Brand New Chapter
by Charlottlette
Summary: This is the story of Professor Samuel Oak and Giovanni of Team Rocket when they were teenagers, just starting out on their own Pokemon journeys.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer-I do not own Pokemon. The characters are not mine. Please read and review. Thanks! *Brand New Chapter*  
  
"Tell us Giovanni, which Pokemon do you plan to capture?" a student asks.  
  
"Well of course, everyone has their own personal favorites, but I plan to capture as many as possible." Giovanni says.  
  
The crowd that had been gathering oohed and aahed listening to their fellow classmate's story. Samuel and Agatha walked into class together and sighed when they saw all the commotion.  
  
"There he is, at it again, telling everyone how great a Pokemon master he's going to be." Agatha says.  
  
"I'm surprised that he's waited so long to get his trainer's license at fourteen. Usually trainers start at age ten." Samuel says.  
  
Agatha laughs. "You're starting out kinda late yourself, you know. You're only two years older than him." she teases.  
  
Seeing Samuel, Giovanni parts the crowd, bowing to his rival.  
  
"Well, if it isn't Samuel Oak! To what do we owe this pleasure?" he asks.  
  
"It's almost time for class, Giovanni. There's no point of interrupting class any furthur. We can't get our starter Pokemon until after school anyway." Samuel says.  
  
'You mean you haven't even gotten your first Pokemon yet?" Deliah asks.  
  
"Oh hi, Deliah." Agatha says.  
  
Samuel couldn't imagine what Deliah saw in Giovanni. She was such a nice girl, so unlike her arrogant boyfriend who enjoyed nothing than bragging about his skills as a trainer to his always eager audience.  
  
"Giovanni already has his first Pokemon." Deliah says.  
  
He pulls out out a pokeball. 'Yes. Why don't you meet him? I just caught himself a few days ago." Giovanni says.  
  
He releases his Pokemon, a low-level Machop.  
  
"Machop!!" it cries.  
  
The crowd oohs and aahs again as they try to get close enough to touch his pokemon. He recalls him quickly.  
  
"Pokemon are not objects to get attention, Giovanni. They have feelings and emotions like anyone else." Samuel says.  
  
Giovanni laughs. 'Save your big dramatc speeches, Samuel. Feelings indeed! Pokemon are just tools of war, nothing more." Giovanni says.  
  
The bell rang, signaling the beginning of class. The two rivals put their agrument on hold for another day.  
  
I feel sorry for Giovanni, Samuel thought. He is never going to get anywhere as a trainer without considering the feelings of his Pokemon. Pokemon were not tools of war, they were living, breathing creatures that deserved a trainer's love and respect. It was trainers like Giovanni that gave Pokemon Tech a bad name.  
  
  
  
  
  
Samuel and his classmates were just finishing up their freshmen year at Pokemon Tech school and were looking forward to resuming their training over the summer.  
  
Most of his friends had started their training much earlier than he and Giovanni. It was one of the few things they had in common. Both of their parents had held them back from training until their freshman year of high school. They had both decided to take a little extra time, Samuel to focus on his studies, Giovanni on capturing his first Pokemon and acquiring items for use in battle.  
  
He was sixteen, Giovanni was fourteen. He and Giovanni had known each other all their lives, but they did not consider themselves friends. Samuel had made many efforts over the years to befriend his rival to no avail.  
  
Giovanni was not an easy person to like. He was arrogant and rude, gaining a group of followers that hung on his every word. Unlike him, Samuel was something of a bookworm, studying as much as he could about Pokemon.  
  
The people he was closest to was his girlfriend Agatha and Giovanni's girlfriend, Deliah.  
  
He and Giovanni had known Deliah all their lives, and he considered her to be a good friend. He had been shocked when she had told him that she and Giovanni were going out together.  
  
"I don't know what it is, Samuel. There's just something about him." she had told him.  
  
As for Agatha, she was the one constant in his life. They were best friends as well as a couple. They enjoyed each other's company, the two of them sharing their love for Pokemon. She had been training for a number of years in the Johto region, where she hoped to one day be good enough to be a gym leader or even a member of the Elite 4.  
  
"That's my dream, Samuel, my goal as a trainer." she had told him.  
  
He too had goals. He planned to capture and train as many Pokemon as possible to compete in the newly formed Kanto league. It would take him a few months to complete the league and then he could concentrate on training for the Elite 4 when school started again. He had also already put in applications at several Pokemon universities, hoping to be accepted to make his studies in Pokemon research.  
  
This was his sole reason for wanting to become a trainer, so he could learn more about them from hands-on experience.  
  
His thoughts were interrupted as class ended and Agatha came up to him.  
  
"I made lunch today for us if you'd care to join me." she offers.  
  
"Well, isn't this cozy? I didn't know you had brought your mother to school with you, Samuel. Is she going to lay out your clothes in the morning for you too?" Giovanni taunts.  
  
His entourage roared with laughter. Samuel frowned, seeing that Deliah was laughing as well.  
  
"He's just jealous because he'll never be half the man you are, Samuel." Agatha says.  
  
Giovanni laughs. "I think you need to tighten your girlfriend's leash a little, Samuel. She doesn't seem very obedient. Haven't you trained your woman better than that?" he asks.  
  
"I'm not going to waste my time agruing with you, Giovanni. I have better things to do." Samuel says.  
  
He and Agatha walk away, laughter chorusing behind them.  
  
"Don't let them bother you, Samuel. They're not worth it." Agatha tells him.  
  
"It's not that. It's that Deliah was laughing too. I thought she was my friend." Samuel says.  
  
"She is. She only does it out of loyalty to Giovanni. She doesn't know any better. One day she'll straighten out." she says.  
  
Maybe, he thought. I guess if he makes her happy, that's all that counts. He smiled at Agatha as she set up their meal. I'm going to miss her when I go out to train, he thought. I won't see her for another three months. She looked at her watch. She took out one of her pokeballs.  
  
"Time to let Gastly get some excercise. Professor Fir said it would be good to release him during the day." Agatha says.  
  
"Gastly!" he laughs.  
  
They both laugh as he floats about, laughing. She pets him.  
  
"Okay Gastly, you can play for awhile, just be good." she says.  
  
"Gastly!" he says, floating around in circles to amuse her. Samuel pours himself a drink and saw that she was offering him a gift wrapped package.  
  
"What's this?" he asks.  
  
"It's a gift. Open it." Agatha says.  
  
He unwrapped it quickly to reveal a small purple velvet book with matching pen set.  
  
"it's a Pokemon journal. I thought you could use it to keep track of your advantures while you were on the road." she says.  
  
He smiled and embraced her. "Thank you." he says. 


	2. The journey cometh

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me  
  
"Only a couple more hours until you get to start your travels, are you excited?" Deliah asks Giovanni.  
  
"I'd like you to come with me." he says.  
  
This was unexpected, she thought. He'd never mentioned it before.  
  
"Really? I'd like to, but I wouldn't want to be in the way." she says.  
  
He takes her hands and looks her in the eyes.  
  
"You wouldn't be. What do you say?" he asks.  
  
She embraces him. "Of course I'll go!" she says.  
  
Putting his hands on her hips, he leaned towards her and took her lips in a sweet, sensual kiss. She lost herself in his embrace, not wanting to be anywhere else.  
  
Some people think I'm crazy for loving Giovanni, but they don't know him like I do, she thought. He may put on an aggressive front, but he had never been anything but loving towards her. They had only been seeing each other for a couple months, but she knew from the moment they met, they would be together.  
  
It had been Samuel that had introduced them. He was the most skeptical of all. She remembered the day that she had told him that she and Giovanni had gotten together.  
  
"I hope you know what you're doing. I don't want you to get hurt." Samuel had told her.  
  
He had been so concerned, but she had promised him that she would be alright. She had even been there when he had caught his Machop. I believe in him, she thought, looking up into his eyes. He smiled too, as though he understood...  
  
  
  
"I can't wait for Professor Fir to arrive. I wonder what the starter Pokemon will be this year?" a boy asks.  
  
"I heard Giovanni already has a super rod and twenty ultra balls. He's awesome!" another says.  
  
A few other teens nodded, agreeing with him. Samuel couldn't believe how big the crowd was this year to get starter Pokemon. He smiled, thinking of this. He had worked many summers volunteering at the Professor's lab in Pallet Town in the Kanto region. For years, trainers had recieved their first Pokemon there. He looked up to the Professor for giving him the chance to care for all the various Pokemon there.  
  
"You're the most studious young man I've ever had work for me. I predict great things for you if you stay the course." Professor Fir had said.  
  
"I won't get distracted, I promise." Samuel told him.  
  
The crowd hushed quickly as Professor Fir made his appearance to a round of applause.  
  
"Thank you, everyone. For those of you that do not know me, my name is Professor Highland Fir. I am the person that you will recieve your starter Pokemon from. I see lots of familiar faces out there, along with some new ones. May I be the first to congratulate all of you and wish you luck on your Pokemon journeys." he says.  
  
He wasted no time getting as many trainers as possible registered and handed out their Pokemon. Samuel tried to distract himself from the loud beating of his heart from his excitement.  
  
"it's almost your turn." a voice said behind him.  
  
He turned around to face Deliah.  
  
"What are you doing here? I didn't know you were training too." he says.  
  
"I'm not. I came to find you. I wanted to wish you good luck." she says.  
  
"Thanks. I am a little nervous, but I'm excited, too. What are you going to do while Giovanni's gone?" he asks.  
  
"Actually, he asked me to go with him. I didn't want to miss all the fun everyone's having, so I decided to go." she says.  
  
"Okay, Deliah. Just be careful out there, okay?" he says.  
  
She kisses his cheek, lingering for a moment. "You're so sweet. I promise I'll be careful." she says.  
  
She leaves, him touching his cheek where she had kissed him.  
  
"Blushing, Samuel? You must have just had an encounter with Deliah. People are going to think you like her or something." his friend teased.  
  
It was his friend William Westwood the fifth, a fellow lab volunteeer.  
  
"Hey! I haven't seen you since last summer! How's it going?" Samuel asks.  
  
"Great! My Slowpoke and I are making great progress. I still haven't caught a Shellder to help him evolve. I kinda like him the way he is." he says.  
  
"I wish I would have known you would be here. I would of brought some treats that Agatha and I made together a few nights ago." Samuel says.  
  
  
  
Tired of showing off his Pokemon to all the trainers outside, Giovanni sat down for a moment to take inventory of all the things he had packed for his trip.  
  
"Hello, young man." a voice says.  
  
He looked up quickly to see the most incredible woman he'd ever seen. She had to be at least six feet tall, with waist-length red hair and a slender build.  
  
"Do I know you?" he asks.  
  
"I'm sure you're going to want to. My name is Mei. You seem like a healthy young man." she says.  
  
"Are you going to get to the point?" he asks.  
  
She laughed. "Feisty, too. I like that. I think you'd make a great addition to my team." she says.  
  
He stood then. "I'm not about to take orders from the likes of you. Whatever you're offering, I'm not interested." he tells her.  
  
She bends over to face him, giving him a full view of her heavy bosom.  
  
"Here's my card. Maybe you'll reconsider." she says.  
  
He watched her leave, throwing the card into a puddle on the ground. He walked away as well, the bold lettering on her card fading away, enblazoned with the letters TR...  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Samuel had been surprised when Professor Fir had waited until everyone had left to escort him outside to where he let all his Pokemon run free.  
  
"Considering how much you have loved and cared for my Pokemon every summer, I thought I would reward you by letting you take that baby Pokemon you cared for last summer as your starter." he says.  
  
"You mean that baby Kangashakan?" he asks.  
  
"Yes. She's no longer a baby, but she's still young. I think I can trust you to be a good trainer for her." he says.  
  
Samuel smiled as Fir handed him his first pokeball. "Thank you, Professor." he says.  
  
Professor Fir smiled. "Take good care of her, young man, and good luck to you." the Professor says.  
  
  
  
"Some woman wanted you to join her organization? What did you say?" Deliah asks.  
  
"I said no, of course. If I'm ever a member of some organization, it'll be because I'm it's leader. I'd like to show what my parents got me for my travels." Giovanni says.  
  
He led her to the garage where he uncovered a small moped.  
  
"What do you think? Now we won't have to walk." he says.  
  
She embraces him. "This is so great, Giovanni. We're going to have a great time." she says.  
  
He smiled at her, taking her into his arms for a long, passionate kiss. She pressed her body against him.  
  
"I'm so glad you decided to come with me, Deliah." he says.  
  
She smiled at him. "I am too." she says.  
  
He kissed her again. this time with a little more urgency. She lost herself in his embrace and the excitement of what was to come...  
  
  
  
"Which Pokemon did you get as your starter?" a friend asks Samuel.  
  
Agatha had come to say goodbye to Samuel before he left, and had brought their friend Joseph Sequoia with her. He too, had worked with him at the Professor's lab for many summers and was looking forward to resuming his training as well.  
  
"He let me have the baby Kangashakan I cared for last summer." Samuel says.  
  
"He must really think you'll suceed if he gave you that one. Kangashakan are hard to train. I'm envious." he says.  
  
"I think she's already tame too. I remember how hard it was for you to tame your Charmander." he says.  
  
"Yeah. He just evolved to Charmeleon a couple months ago. Do you want to see him?" he asks.  
  
"Yeah. We can introduce them to each other." he says.  
  
They both pulled out their pokeballs. "Okay." Samuel says.  
  
They both release their Pokemon, who appeared with a cry.  
  
"Kangash!" Samuel's Pokemon roared.  
  
He offers her two pieces of Pokemon food that Agatha had brought. She ate it happily.  
  
"Take the other piece and offer it to Joesph's Pokemon." he tells her.  
  
She goes over to the orange dragon, offering him the treat. He accepts and uses his Ember attack to cook it a little, offering her half of his.  
  
"Your Charmeleon is really nice. Thank you." Samuel says.  
  
"I've never seen him do that before. That's really cool." he says.  
  
  
  
  
  
They both recalled their Pokemon.  
  
"I guess I'll see you soon, Samuel. Goodbye, Agatha." he says.  
  
They watch him leave. Samuel and Agatha look at each other for a moment before they embrace, holding each other tightly.  
  
"i'm going to miss you, Samuel. Be sure to stay in touch." Agatha says.  
  
"I will. I'll write as often as I can, and write down everything that happens on my travels." Samuel says.  
  
  
  
There's no place I'd rather be than here relaxing under the night sky with the one I love, Deliah thought. The stars were so beautiful and romantic. She was so caught up in her stargazing that she didn't notice that Giovanni was leaning over her.  
  
"Oh! You startled me." she says.  
  
"Sorry. You just looked so pretty staring off like that. I've always done that too, lose myself in the stars." he says.  
  
"Isn't that night sky romantic? It's so beautiful." she says.  
  
"Not as beautiful as you." he says.  
  
He takes her into his arms and holds her close. She smiled and curled up close enough to him to be able to hear his heartbeat. She loved being close to him, and she could tell he felt the same way. 


	3. first battles

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me  
  
June 1  
  
---------  
  
My first day of training. The young Kangashakan the Professor gave me as a starter already knows two attacks-Comet Punch and Rage. I found out that if I beat the Viridian City gym leader, they will give me the TM Fissure to teach to her. It's supposed to be a one-hit knockout move that ground types use effectively. This should come in handy. She's only at level six so far. We've encountered many wild Pokemon on our way to Viridian City, mostly Pidgey and Rattata. We battled a couple, but didn't catch any because I need to get some pokeballs.  
  
We are spending the night in Viridian City. We spent the whole day training, so I will check out the gym tomorrow. There are many trainers staying here and it is too noisy to sleep. I can't help but overhear some conversations. A few trainers are talking about Giovanni, big surprise, saying he was asked to join some mysterious organization. They say he was very rude to the person that offered, so I believe it. Most of the rumors are circulating around the identity of the Viridian City gym leader. No one has ever seen them, not even those that have battled them. They always stay in the shadows. They say whoever they are, they are very rich and powerful and own a casino in Celadon City.  
  
There is a young guy around my age teaching trainers how to catch Pokemon and I also met a salesman on my way here that gave me a potion for my Kangashakan.  
  
It is nearly midnight here and Deliah and Giovanni just made it in. Giovanni grunted at me as he made his way to clean up and get something to eat. I walked up to Deliah.  
  
"Hi, Samuel." she says.  
  
"You look like you've had a hard day, Deliah. Do you want to talk about it?" I ask.  
  
She told me the whole story...  
  
It was nearly midnight and neither Giovanni or Deliah had made it to the Viridian City Pokemon Center. They had spent all day capturing and training Pokemon and were now  
  
trying to find a rare Pokemon a young trainer had released by accident.  
  
"Be quiet, Deliah. I don't need your two cents. i'm going to be the one to capture that kid's rare Pikachu. Having an electric type this early in my travels would be a very good thing. I don't care how late it is!" Giovanni says.  
  
Every once in a while, he would speak to her like that, but she always blew it off. She looked up to see a trainer standing in front of her/  
  
"Are you a trainer? Let's battle!" he shouts.  
  
"I don't have any Pokemon. You'll have to talk to my boyfriend." she says.  
  
The trainer smiles then. "Even better that you don't." he says.  
  
He releases his Pokemon, a very angry Mankey. "Mankey, use Scratch!" he shouts.  
  
Deliah screamed as she got up and ran away as fast as she could.  
  
"Deliah!" Giovanni shouts.  
  
He released his Machop right in front of the Mankey.  
  
"You leave my girlfriend alone or you'll answer to me! Machop, use your Karate Chop." Giovanni shouts.  
  
Deliah's attacker gasps as Machop lays out his Pokemon quickly. He recalls his Pokemon and runs away. Giovanni goes over to Deliah.  
  
"Are you okay?" he asks.  
  
She threw herself into his arms.  
  
"Oh Giovanni, thank you for protecting me. I'm sorry I interfered in capturing that Pikachu." she says.  
  
He held her close, glad she was okay...  
  
  
  
June 2  
  
---------  
  
The three of us decided we would challenge the Viridian City gym leader together. Giovanni wasn't very happy about this, but Deliah assured him that they would be on their way quickly and back to training.  
  
The three of us stood before the entrance of Viridian Gym and were instantly confronted by two heavily armored guards.  
  
"Welcome to Viridian Gym. Please present the seven badges of the Kanto League." they say.  
  
"What?" Giovanni says.  
  
"We are new trainers. We've come to challenge the gym leader to a match." Samuel says.  
  
"Only those that have defeated all seven gyms of the Kanto League may pass through these doors." they say.  
  
Needless to say, we were both upset by these chain of events.  
  
"If you need the other seven badges to defeat them, maybe it is a good idea to wait." Deliah says.  
  
"Why don't you be guiet? I'll yank your chain if I want your input." Giovanni told her.  
  
Samuel turned to face him then.  
  
"Don't talk to her that way. I've warned you before, Giovanni." he says.  
  
Giovanni smiled. "Those sound like fighting words to em. Let's battle." he says.  
  
They both released their Pokemon.  
  
"Kangashakan, use your Comet Punch." Samuel told her.  
  
"Machop, use your Karate Chop." Giovanni says.  
  
Machop blocked the larger Pokemon's attack and threw her off her feet with his. Giovanni laughed.  
  
"Stupid weak Pokemon! How do you expect to win any battles with such a worthless Pokemon?" he asks.  
  
Samuel turned as he heard his Pokemon roar with anger. This must be her Rage attack, he thought.  
  
"Kangashakan, use your Rage attack!" he shouts.  
  
What neither of them was that they had a very captive audience nearby. The young woman petted her pet Meowth happily as she watched the larger Pokemon defeat the smaller one.  
  
"Impressive! That young trainer has a lot of promise. It's a shame about the other one's defeat. I like the fire in his eyes, he has so much potiential...it will only be a matter of time until we meet again." she says.  
  
I won my battle against Giovanni. Needless to say, this angered him even more. He grabbed Deliah by the hand, the two of them getting on his moped.  
  
"Stay away from my girlfriend and out of our affairs." Giovanni shouts, speeding away. 


	4. flynt

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me  
  
To my dearest Agatha,  
  
I caught my first Pokemon today!  
  
After stocking up on supplies at the Viridian City Pokemart, I decided to venture back the way I had come to see if I could capture some of the Pokemon I had already seen. I released my Kangashakan to walk beside me just as a Pidgey swooped down on us. Before I could even command my Pokemon, she surprised me with her quick reflexes by weakening it with her Comet Punch.  
  
I threw one of my pokeballs at the Pidgey, watching the ball twitch furiously as it fought the capture. It finally stopped moving. I don't know who was happier, my Kangashakan and I. I released the small bird so we could become acquinted.  
  
Somehow the small bird didn't feel like I was a threat as I petted it. It chirped happily and climbed up on my shoulder. I jumped as it began to cry loudly, seeing a Rattata nearby. Here was my chance to capture another Pokemon.  
  
"Pidgey, use Tackle!" I say.  
  
It slammed into the small Pokemon, allowing me time to throw yet another pokeball and capture this one as well.  
  
Now i have three, my Kangashakan, a Pidgey and a Rattata. I wish you could have been here to see their capture. They are incredibly sweet Pokemon and they adore the treats we made together before we parted.  
  
I miss you. See you soon.  
  
Samuel  
  
  
  
Delaih was glad that Giovanni was in a better mood. She knew that one of his pet peeves was any kind of setbacks in his plans. He was very centered and goal oriented, and always eliminated any distractions.  
  
"I would never see you as a distraction, Deliah. I love you." he told her.  
  
She was happy. They had been training all day, and had captured two more Pokemon, a Nidoran male and a Nidoran female. All of his Pokemon were already at level nine, and they had already made it to the middle of Viridian Forest.  
  
"Looks like our next stop is Pewter City. I wonder who the gym leader is?" Deliah wonders.  
  
"I was told that he trains rock type Pokemon. I guess I should try to catch a water type Pokemon." Giovanni says.  
  
Deliah smiled. "Water Pokemon are so cute and mysterious. Which one are you planning to capture?" she asks.  
  
He turned on her quickly. "Pokemon may be mysterious, but they are definitely not cute. All Pokemon are objects in which to achieve our goals as trainers. Only someone who is simple minded would take time out of their busy lives to consider any other idea." Giovanni told her.  
  
She knew better than to contradict him as they made their way out of the forest and towards Pewter City. Delaih spied a nearby vegatable garden a young man was tending.  
  
"Why don't we release your Pokemon and ask this young man if he'll let us buy some goods from him? I'm hungry and I'll bet your Pokemon are too." Delaih says.  
  
Not in the mood to argue, Giovanni went over to the young man while Delaih released his Pokemon. She petted his Machop and cuddled both Nidorans close to her. They nibbled affectionately on her arm, waving their paws at each other.  
  
"Hello, my name is Flynt Harrison and this is my rock garden. Would you like to buy some rocks?" he asks.  
  
"Actually, we were hoping to buy some vegatables for our group." Giovanni says.  
  
"Are you a Pokemon trainer? Wow!! I just got my trainer's license, but my dad needs me at his gym. He's the Pewter City gym leader." Flynt says.  
  
  
  
It's going to take forever to get to Pewter City, Samuel thought, as he walked through Viridian Forest. I have found lots of useful items I can use in battle. I was hoping to find a couple TMs, but no such luck. We've battled quite a few bug Pokemon out here and now all my Pokemon are at level nine.  
  
My Pidgey knows three attacks-tackle, sand attack and gust. My Rattata also knows three attacks-tackle, tail whip and quick attack.  
  
We sat down for lunch and I could have sworn I had seen a flash of yellow nearby. I sent my Pidgey to find it to no avail. She had been in too many battles and was exhausted. I guess our next stop will be the Pewter City Pokemon Center.  
  
"Excuse me, I think you may need these." a young woman says.  
  
I turned to face the stranger that was offering me a set of earplugs.  
  
"What are these for?" I ask, looking at them.  
  
She smiled at me. "Trust me. You'll thank me later." she says.  
  
He accepted her gift graciously amking his way towards Pewter City. He was immediately greeted by a young man holding a basket of vegatables.  
  
"You're the second trainer I've seen today. Would you like to buy a basket of vegatables? If you do, I'll give you something extra too." Flynt says.  
  
Samuel agreed, needing some items for his Pokemon anyway. Flynt smiled.  
  
"Thank you. My name is Flynt. How many Pokemon do you have?" he asks.  
  
"I'm Samuel Oak. I have three Pokemon, a Pidgey, a Rattata and a Kangashakan." he says.  
  
"Well, I doubt you'll be able to beat the Pewter City gym leader with those Pokemon. He trains rock types. If you like, I can help you get to where you need to go to capture a strong enough Pokemon to use against him." he says.  
  
"How?" Samuel asks.  
  
Flynt points a bush nearby.  
  
"You see that bush? If you have a Pokemon that knows Cut, you can cut it down to go through Diglett's Cave to get to Vermillion City." he says.  
  
"That sounds great, but I need to get to the Pokemon center first." Samuel says.  
  
"I'll go with you." Flynt offered.  
  
Samuel agreed. "You said you had met another trainer today?" Samuel asks.  
  
"Yeah. A guy that was a little younger than you and his girlfriend. They were going to the Pokemon center too. I hope they're okay." Flynt says.  
  
"What do you mean? Why wouldn't they be?" Samuel asks.  
  
He walks inside the Pokemon center and realizes that his companion had stayed behind. After a few minutes, he realizes why.  
  
"Deliah!" Samuel shouts.  
  
He catches her just as she falls to the floor unconscious. He looked around quickly and saw everyone else in the building was asleep too.  
  
"What is going on here?" he mutters.  
  
He feels himself about to fall asleep too as he finds out what had caused all the commotion.  
  
In the corner of the room stood a small pink Pokemon with big wide eyes singing a sweet lullaby, assumingly using some kind of attack to lull everyone into slumber.  
  
"What kind of pokemon is that?" he whispers, before everything goes black. 


	5. new captures

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me. Author note-to my faithful reader Plesiomon, no, Flynt does not stay with Samuel. He just followed him to Pewter because he lives there too. On with the story!  
  
"What kind of irresponsible trainer allows their Pokemon to attack a roomful of people?" Giovanni shouts.  
  
Samuel woke up to the sound of Giovanni shouting. By now, everyone was waking up and was watching the scene quietly. The trainer in question had recalled their Pokemon and didn't seem frightened in the least by the one that was confronting her.  
  
"For your information, I'm a very responsible trainer. The Pokemon that attacked you was my Jigglypuff. She only attacked you because she was defending me." she says.  
  
Samuel struggled to his feet, helping Deliah up as well.  
  
"Are you okay?" he asks her.  
  
She blushed. "I should be asking you that. It was you that I fell on." she says.  
  
"That young woman's Pokemon attacked all of us." Giovanni told her.  
  
"She only attacked him," she says, pointing to Giovanni, "Her Sing attack is very powerful. I'm sorry that everyone else was affected as well."  
  
Both Samuel and Giovanni turned in their Pokemon to be healed. He and Deliah left as quickly as they had come.  
  
"My name's Toya. What's yours?" she asks.  
  
"Samuel. How long have you had that Pokemon?" he asks.  
  
"I caught her at the base of Mt. Moon just east of here. There's lots of wild Pokemon in those caverns. I'm sorry about what happened." she says.  
  
Samuel smiled. "Don't worry about it. That guy's a hothead; your Jigglypuff did the right thing. Maybe it'll calm him down a little. It was nice to meet you." Samuel says.  
  
By this time, Giovanni and Deliah were way ahead of him, making their way through Diglett's Cave. Deliah couldn't help but notice little cries as they drove through on his moped.  
  
"Giovanni, I think we're hurting the Pokemon that live here. I keep hearing little grunts of pain." she tells him.  
  
"Who cares about stupid little mole Pokemon? The only thing they were useful for was digging this cave for humans." he tells her.  
  
She felt sorry for the little Diglett even if he didn't. They would be out of the cave soon, and the Pokemon that lived there would only be disturbed for a few more minutes.  
  
"Giovanni, look." she says.  
  
He flashed on his front light to reveal a small Diglett remaining in the path of their moped.  
  
"Don't hit it!" she shouts.  
  
"I will if it doesn't get out of my way!" he says.  
  
She watched as the small Pokemon frowned at the two of them and began to glow. They shielded their eyes as the light got brighter and brighter.  
  
"I think...it's evolving." Deliah says.  
  
Giovanni pulls out a pokeball. "Good. I'll capture it then." he says.  
  
The light disapated to reveal a very angry Dugtrio. Before Giovanni could make his move, both he and Deliah gasped as their mpoed was attacked by the small Pokemon's Hyper Beam attack, blowing them out of the cavern.  
  
  
  
"I'll make you a deal. I'll trade you my Pinsir if you promise me you'll catch me a Geodude at Mt. Moon." Flynt tells Samuel.  
  
"You'll really trust me with your Pinsir? I'd be honored to help you." Samuel says.  
  
Flynt hands him his pokeball.  
  
'Take good care of him." Flynt says.  
  
Samuel nodded, heading towards Vermillion City.  
  
  
  
He decided to compose another letter to Agatha as he walked.  
  
Dear Agatha,  
  
I am on my way to Vermillion City as I speak. I befriended the son of the Pewter City gym leader, who let me borrow his Pinsir if I promised to catch a Geodude for him at Mt. Moon. He told me I need a Pokemon that's strong enough to win against his dad. I'd hate to pit my three against a rock type if they're at a disadvantage. He said I would do okay against his dad's junior trainers, but it was still a good idea to be prepared.  
  
It's very dark and hard to see through Diglett's Cave, but the Pokemon that live here are helping me through with their cries, my Pidgey helping as well. It seems as though there was some kind of accident near the end of the cave, like someone upset these endearing little ground types.  
  
I pulled out my map and made my way to this little house just east of Vermillion. It says there's a fisherman there that will give you a good rod in which to catch Pokemon.  
  
Hopefully by the time you recieve this, I will have won the Boulderbadge.  
  
Love, Samuel  
  
  
  
"We were lucky. Thank goodness it only aimed for the ground in front of our moped. That was a close one." Deliah says.  
  
"This is what I've been trying to tell you, Deliah. Pokemon have no moral compass. That's why they'll never be better than any human." Giovanni says.  
  
She had heard this speech many times, but she had her own feelings about Pokemon. Unlike Giovanni, who thought Pokemon were only on earth to serve humans. She was like Samuel in her thinking, that Pokemon were incredible mystical creatures.  
  
They were aitting on the dock in Vermillion City, with Giovanni commanding his Machop to use his super rod to fish for them.  
  
"If you screw up, no dinner for you." he had told his Machop.  
  
"That's not fair. I'm sure he's just as hungry as your Nidoran." Deliah says.  
  
"Zip it! I didn't ask for your opinion." Giovanni told her.  
  
She turneed her attention to his Nidoran, who were sharing a carrot. They both turned as something tugged at his fishing line.  
  
"Machop!" his Pokemon cried.  
  
He pulls in his catch quickly to reveal a Krabby. Machop uses his Karate Chop to weaken it, allowing Giovanni to catch it. Deliah jumps up and embraces him.  
  
"Congratulations! We'll have to go celebrate." she says. 


	6. boulderbadge

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me.  
  
It was getting dark by the time Samuel got to the fisherman's house. The fisherman opened the door to him before he could even knock.  
  
"Good evening, young trainer. Welcome to my home. May I offer you a drink?" he asks.  
  
Samuel accepted his hospitality graciously. He sat at the table and had tea with his new friend, who told him his Pokemon were welcome in his home too. He offered Samuel a place to stay for the night and gave him the good rod he had come to get.  
  
Too excited to sleep, Samuel took his fishing rod and Pokemon out to the dock to fish. His Rattata and Kangashkan were snoozing peacefully beside him, Pidey pecking at pieces of cookie on his shoulder. Samuel yawned just as his Kangashakan's eyes snapped open.  
  
"What? What is it, Kangashakan?" he asks.  
  
She points at a small blue Pokemon waddling towards them. Samuel stood then.  
  
"It's a Polywag. Rattata, use your Quick Attack." he says.  
  
He rushes towards the Polywag, knocking it off it's feet. In response, it ises it's Bubble attack on him. The two Pokemon exchanged blows for a few minutes, and Rattata fell to the ground, Pidgey used it's Gust attack to finish the battle. Samuel used his pokeball and watched as the ball stopped moving.  
  
"You caught that Polywag. Nice work." the fisherman says.  
  
"Thanks." Samuel says, as happy as his Pokemon were. June 3  
  
Giovanni and Deliah celebrated his newest capture by spending the night on the S.S. Anne. They had recieved an invitation from a partygoer on the dock and shared a private cabin. Deliah wasn't sure what to think about their sleeping arrangements, but he promised to be a perfect gentleman.  
  
They went to the dance they were having on the main deck. He told her he would meet her upstairs and handed her a large package.  
  
"Don't open this until I leave." he told her.  
  
Once he left, she opened the package to reveal the most beautiful dress she'd ever seen. It was an almost floor length sky blue taffeta dress with matching lace trim. She read the note he had enclosed:  
  
A dress for the lady whose beauty knows no bounds...love, Giovanni.  
  
She smiled, embracing the dress against her. It was times like this that she truly loved him, when he would do things like this to completely overwhelm her senses.  
  
She joined him on the main deck and saw that he wore a suit in the same color as her dress.  
  
"Oh Deliah..." he says, at a loss of words.  
  
She smiles and embraces him.  
  
"Would you like to dance?" she asks.  
  
He smiled and took her offered hand. The crowd parted to watch the young couple dance, the two of them only seeing the other.  
  
"Thank you, Deliah." Giovanni says.  
  
"Thank you for what?" she asks.  
  
"For being so patient with me on this journey. I'm sorry that I've been so short with you; I've just been under a lot of stress. You know how badly I want to succeed as a Pokemon trainer." Giovanni says.  
  
"I understand completely. I know everything will work out." Deliah says.  
  
He smiles then. "I love you so much, Deliah." he says.  
  
"I love you too, Giovanni." she says.  
  
They smile at each other, contiuning to dance even though the music had ended... Dear Agatha,  
  
I have had an eventful couple days. Since I write you last, I have captured two more Pokemon, a Polywag and a Pinsir. The Pinsir was actually a trade from another trainer I promised to capture another Pokemon for. His name was Flynt, the son of the Pewter City gym leader.  
  
I felt bad last night because I forgot that I had him, and didn't let him out of his pokeball overnight. He's at level ten, and knows vicegrip and cut. Flynt taught him the HM move.  
  
The Polywag I caught last night while I was fishing near Vermillion. As I am writing you, I am heading towards the Pokemon fan club meeting.  
  
The fisherman who gave me my good rod invited me. He told me if I listen to the president of the fan club talk, I would win some kind of prize.  
  
The meeting is very entertaining. The members love their Pokemon very much, and the building is filled with all kinds of Pokemon, every type you can imagine. The president of the club is the same age as I am, and told us all about his favorite, Rapidash. He went on and on about it's wonderful qualities, and gave us all bike vouchers to use at Cerealean City bike shop.  
  
Now I am heading back to Pewter City, so I can battle for my first badge. I decided to avoid the Pokemon center and used potions on my Pokemon to prepare them.  
  
I walked into the gym and was confronted by Flynt, who challenged me to a battle.  
  
I decided to use my Kangashakan, while he used his Exeggcute. His Pokemon used Hypnosis on mine to make her fall asleep, so I recalled her and sent out my Rattata. He scattered the egg Pokemon with his Quick Attack, before it countered with it's Barrage attack.  
  
Then I remembered something you told me, that grass types were vulnerable to flying types. I recalled Rattata and sent Pidgey into the fray. She artfully used her sand attack to distract her enemy, and then finshed it off with Quick Attack.  
  
It was then that I met the Pewter City gym leader, who came up to greet me being the victor.  
  
"Nice work there, young man. My son is a very skilled trainer, but so it seems are you. My name is Phelan. Would you like to battle?" he asks me.  
  
I accepted his challenge, and sent out my newly captured Polyway. He sent out his Ryhorn.  
  
Before I could issue commands, his Pokemon had already attacked mine, using his Horn Attack. I was impressed with my water type's skills as it dodged the larger Pokemon's attack. I commanded it to use Bubble, and it took down the enemy in one shot.  
  
I hadn't known rock types were so vulnerable to water, but I wasn't going to let my guard down. He sent out his second and last Pokemon, an Aerodactyl.  
  
I was shocked. I had thought this Pokemon had been extinct. He told me that before he had bcome a gym leader, he had worked at the Pokemon research lab on Cinnabar Island, where he had revived his ancient Pokemon from fossiled old amber.  
  
Impressive, I thought. I decided to stick with my Polywag, who launched his Bubble attack. His Pokemon used Agility to dodge the water attack, using his Wing Attack to inflict a great deal of damage. Then I found out he had taught his Aerodactyl Fly.  
  
As it swooped down to deliever the final blow, I recalled Polywag and sent out Pinsir. He caught the flying type in his pinsirs and slammed him onto the ground. I thne recalled him and sent out my Polywag to finsh the job with his Bubble attack.  
  
I won the Boulderbadge!! I couldn't of done it without my trusted Pokemon or without remembering what you had told me, my love.  
  
Thank you.  
  
Love, Samuel It felt so good to finally get some rest thst neither Deliah or Giovanni wanted to get out of bed. They had shared the same bed overnight, but not much had happened.  
  
After spending a wonderful night together at the arty, they had gone back to their cabin and immediately fallen into each other's embrace. They took turns using the bathroom to change into their bedclothes, finding each other again int he darkened room. Keeping his promise to her as he intended, the two of them fell asleep in each other's arms. Deliah smiled and snuggled up against her sleeping boyfriend, her mind running a million miles a minute. she thought about Giovanni and their Pokemon, and about Samuel.  
  
I miss him, she thought. I miss having lunch together everyday int he courtyard, talking about Pokemon and our plans for the future.  
  
Her goals were not as lofty as Giovanni and Samuel's. She planned to finish her education, then settle down and get married. she envisioned her and Giovanni having children and her doing volunteer work while he traveled.  
  
that was how she and Samuel had met., doing volunteer work. They had both signed up to work one summer at Professor Fir's lab when she was ten and she was twelve. She believed that neither of them would have met it through that summer without each other's help. I hope he's doing okay, she thought. She noticed that Giovanni was staring at her.  
  
"You're not dressed yet?" he asks.  
  
She blushed, realizing that she was still in her night clothes. She got up and grabbed her clothes quickly, going into the bathroom to change. There was a knock on the door. Goiovanni answered. It was the captain of the ship.  
  
"Good morning. Is this the room of Giovanni and Deliah?" he asks.  
  
"I'm Giovanni." he says.  
  
The captain held out a small object shaped similiar to a pokeball.  
  
"Seems as though you an your lady friend won the contest we were having last night. Here's your prize, the Hidden Machine, Cut." the captain says.  
  
"Wow! You can teach that to your Krabby. Thank you, captain." Deliah says.  
  
"Congratulations, and good luck on your travels." he says. Thanks to battling int he Pewter City gym and winning the Boulderbadge, all of my Pokemon are now at level twelve. My Pidgey is four levels away from evolving to Pidgeotto, so I hope we'll reach that goal at Mt. Moon. This is where we are traveling now. I let my Pidgey rest omy shoulder so I can level it up quicker.  
  
It quickly spotted a Pokemon in the grass nearby. It was an Ekans. This one I definitely wanted to catch, a mid-level snake Pokemon. Pidgey used it's Quick Attack to weaken it, but then the Ekans countered with Wrap.  
  
I felt stupid for not expecting that, and sent out my Polywag to help. He used his Bubble attack to distract him so Pidgey could get loose, and she retailated with another Quick Attack. It was then that I threw my pokeball. This Pokemon put up quite a fight, struggling against it's capture, but eventually it was mine.  
  
Now I had six. Pinsir, Kangashakan, Rattata, Pidgey, Polwag, and Ekans. I was well prepared for the challenges of Mt. Moon. I was grateful that there was a Pokemon center before I entered, because I needed to heal my Pokemon and drop off my Rattata so I could capture some more Pokemon in the mountains. "We finally made to Pewter City. Are you going to take on the gym leader?" Deliah asks.  
  
"You'll have to go through me first." Flynt tells them.  
  
He escorted them to the gym where he began the battle.  
  
"One Pokemon each." Flynt says.  
  
They pulled out their pokeballs.  
  
"Go, Charmander." Flynt says.  
  
Giovanni releases his Krabby.  
  
"Krabby, use Bubble!" he shouts.  
  
Flynt gasps as he watches his Pokemon go down with one hit.  
  
"How did you do that?" Flynt cries.  
  
Giovanni smiles. "I may look like a beginner, but my Krabby is at a higher level than your Pokemon." he says, laughing.  
  
"Not respecting your opponent is going to be your downfall, young trainer." Phelan told him.  
  
Giovanni smirked. "If you underestimate me, that'll be yours." Giovanni told him.  
  
What Phelan didn't know was that Giovanni had spent all day training his Pokemon, and now they were all at level fifteen, five levels higher than any of the gym Pokemon.  
  
I guess I need to teach you the hard way. One Pokemon each! Go, Rhyhorn." Phelan says.  
  
Giovanni smiled. What a joke this gym was, he thought.  
  
"Krabby, use Bubble." he commands.  
  
Phelan smiles. "You must really think I'm a pushover. Rhyhorn, use your Horn Attack." he says.  
  
The larger Pokemon dodged the water attack, barraging the smaller one with his. Giovanni gasped, not expecting this.  
  
"Useless Pokemon." he says.  
  
He reacalls Krabby and sends out his Nidoran female. Sensing her master's frustration, she cried out as she began to glow.  
  
"What's going on? What's happening?" Delaih asks.  
  
"I think she's evolving." Giovanni says.  
  
They all watched as the light faded to reveal Nidorina. Giovanni smiled.  
  
"Nidorina, let's finish this. Use your Double Kick attack." he says.  
  
Rhyhorn reeled and fell to the impact of the surprise attack. Phelan shook his head in disbelief.  
  
"I guess I was wrong about you. You and your Pokemon fought well. You earned this badge." he says.  
  
"Only I earned this badge. My Pokemon were merely a means in which to achieve it." Giovanni says.  
  
Phelan sighed. Maybe I wasn't wrong after all... 


	7. Giovanni's betrayal

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me. author's note-I think they did mess up my paragraphs but hopefully this one will be better.  
  
This trip through Mt. Moon has been a real surprise for me. I have found manty items on the ground here, including two technical machines, TMs 1 & 12, two potions, an escape rope, a rare candy, a piece of a moon stone and a HP Up.  
  
TM1 is Mega Punch, TM12 is Water Gun. I've been told that rare candies are good for leveling up your Pokemon, so I may use it when Pidey reaches level fifteen. The HP Up is good for increasing a Pokemon's hit points, and a moon stone is used to evolve certain types. I may sell the Hp Up when I get to Cerelean City, since I'm getting low on funds. I decided to to teach Mega Punch to my Kangashkan and Water Gun to my Polwag. It was the Water Gun that I used to capture Flynt's Geodude.  
  
I decided to release my Polwag to walk beside me, and was amused to watch how cute it was waddling beside me. I watched as it fell over, tripping over what I thought was a large rock. It was a Geodude, however, and it decided to attack my small water type.  
  
I knew the little Pokemon was strong, but I never knew how aggressive it was. It wasn't about to take any guff from the rock type and pretty much wiped it out with one blast of it's Water Gun.  
  
I was glas that I caught it so late, that way I could head back to Pewter City and get to Fynt in thanks for his Pinsir.  
  
I haven't spent much time with my Pinsir, but I hoped I could have as good of a friendship with it as I did with my other Pokemon. Flynt gave him to me because he knew Cut, but my Pokemon mean more to me than as jsut objects to use to get where I'm going. I've had friends tell me that it's hard to win the trust of a traded Pokemon, but I hope they were wrong.  
  
  
  
If I didn't have this moped, this trip wouldn't be worth it. If the gyms in the Kanto League were anything like the one in Pewter City, becoming a Pokemon master should be a breeze.I must admit the mountain air feels great and Deliah's arms around my waist as we ride along feels even better. It's moments like this that I'm really glad that she came with me.  
  
Last night, when we spent the night together on the cruise ship, I had woken up in the middle of the night. Delaih was lying beside me in only her nightshirt and panties, assuming she had gotten warm overnight and just wanted to be comfortable. I had promised her that I would be a perfect gentleman, but her vulnerability to me was a big temptation. She and I were still both virgins, but we had touched each other before with our clothes on. I couldn't help but be fascinated by the beauty of her beside me, and I fell asleep again beside her, curving my body against hers.  
  
I came out of my daydream as I realized my moped had been knocked off course. I released my Krabby to deal with whatever it was that had caused the problem.  
  
"Look Giovanni, a Geodude." Delaih says.  
  
This was one of the Pokemon I wanted to capture. I knew that it was a common, but I had been told that rock Pokemon were very solid fighters and would be helpful to me in several upcoming gyms. The Geodude accepted my Krabby's challenge, and I had a good laugh when I caught it so easily.  
  
"No big deal, so it's weak. I'll toughen it up. He'll be an invaluable member of the team." Giovanni says.  
  
  
  
"You don't know how much i appreciate this. I didn't think you would really come back like you promised. Thank you." Flynt told Samuel.  
  
I handed him his pokeball containing Geodude.  
  
"Are there a lot of trainers like that you know, dishonest about keeping promises to people? I couldn't live with myself if I wasn't respectful of someone else's feelings." Samuel says.  
  
The two young men stared out into the night sky where they had sat out sleeping bags for the night. He had gone to the gym to deliever Flynt's Pokemon to him, and was invited to dinner with him and his father Phelan.  
  
"I can tell you that you have intregrity as a tainer. That's the most promising trait a young man can have. I only wish all trainers were as honorable as you are." Phelan told him.  
  
After dinner, he and Flynt had gone out to the base of Mt. Moon and set up camp there. Samuel released all of his Pokemon so they could unwind from being cooped up in their pokeballs. This surprised Flynt.  
  
"You let them stay out of their pokeballs for such a long time? Aren't you afraid they'll run away?" he asks.  
  
Samuel lays out a small bowl of Pokemon food, which they all gather around, Kangashkan, Pinsir, Polywag, Ekans and Pidgey.  
  
"I guess I like to think that my Pokemon like me enough to not leave because I treat them with respect. I f any of them were unhappy, I'd hate for them to feel pressured to stay with me just because I caught them." Samuel says.  
  
Flynt shook his head and smiled. "Wow. you are unlike any trainer I have ever met." he says.  
  
"Is that a good thing?" Samuel asks.  
  
They both laugh. "We'll see." Flynt tells him.  
  
  
  
Deliah and I decided to camp out just outside of Cerelean City, near a small lake just outside of town. I was grateful that Deliah was a sound sleeper, because she would hate me if she ever knew what happened just a couple hours ago...  
  
As we prepared for the night, I had noticed a guard for the Kanto League stationed in front of this mysterious looking cave. I wandered quietly away from our campsite as soon as Deliah fell asleep to see what the deal was. What I didn't expect to find was a young woman swimming in the lake with her Wartortle.  
  
She was considerable older than Deliah, and was frolicing happily with her Pokemon. She was not at all surprised to see someone watching her and called out to me.  
  
"Hello there. Would you like to come in for a swim?" she calls.  
  
I found myself unable to refuse as she rose out of the water to greet me, wearing a shiny pink bathing sit that left nothing to the imagination. She smiled as she caught me staring at her. I was speechless. It was she who broke the silence between us.  
  
'Have you never seen a woman's body before? What a sweet young man you are." she says.  
  
I gasped, shocked by her aggressiveness. She took my hands and put htem on her hips. Her hands drifted quickly down between my legs, getting the response she desired. She laughed and gave me a quick kiss.  
  
"You are very cute. Why don't we go into the unknown dungeon and get to know each other a little better?" she says.  
  
Needless to say, I gave myself to that incredible beautiful woman that night and even though I did cheat on my companion Deliah, I felt no remorse. This was an experience I would have been a fool to refuse. I returned to our campsite and fell into a relaxed slumber unlike any other I had ever slept. 


	8. Patience

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me.  
  
June 4  
  
I bid my new friend farewell and made my way through Mt. Moon to get to Cerelean City. It was a much shorter trip by daylight, and I made it there by midafternoon.  
  
I met a trainer at the Pokemon center who asked me if I had a Polywhirl. I told him that I had a level fifteen Polywag who hadn't evolved yet. He asked me if i would trade with him once it evolved for his Jynx. I told him that I would consider it.  
  
This was the city where I could use the bike voucher I had to get a bicycle for my travels. that same trainer told me that having a bicycle was a very good idea, that way I could use Cycling Road as a shortcut to Fushcia City. He also told me that he'd heard there were technical machines scattered around by Cerelean Cape. I decided to go see for myself.  
  
What I found was a group of five trainers that challenged me to battle in order to win a fabulous prize. I accepted their challenge, and was rewarded with my Pidgey evolving to Pidgeotto. My Ekans learned bite, to add to knowing Wrap, Leer and Poison Sting. My Polwag learned Hypnosis, which came in handy. Once I got to the final trainer, he congratulated me and handed me my prize, a gold nugget.  
  
"Sell this at any Pokemart. It'll help you on your travels. You're a great trainer. Would you like to join Team Rocket?" he asks.  
  
"What's Team Rocket?" Samuel asks.  
  
"We're an organization dedicated to using Pokemon to achieve our goal of world domination." he told him.  
  
"World domination? That's terrible! Why would I want to join an organization like that?" he asks.  
  
"With your skills, you could be a very powerful ally. Give it some thought." he says, handing me their card.  
  
Out of politeness, I took his card, making the decision that I would never use my Pokemon for evil purposes. The thought of such an organization disqusted me. I decided not to think about it all as i found the TMs that trainer had mentioned before. I found TMs 19 and 45, Seismic Toss and Thunder Wave. I decided I would sell the electric type TM and I taught Siesmic Toss to my Pinsir. The TM I got from Phelan, Bide, I decided I would sell that one as well.  
  
Exhausted from battling, I decided to go back to the Pokemon center and get some rest before I went to challenge the Cerelean City gym leader. I was surprised to see Deliah there as well, without Giovanni. We had lunch together and caught up with each other's adventures.  
  
"So Giovanni is battling the Cerelean City gym leader as we speak?" I ask.  
  
"Yes. He's been there since this morning. Her name is Patience. She trains water type Pokemon. I'm worried for him; he doesn't have any Pokemon that are strong against that type." Deliah says.  
  
"I'm sure he'll do fine. You look exhausted. Is there something you're not telling me?" I ask.  
  
She sighs. "I am tired, that's true, but it's more than that. I thought this would be time that he and I could develop a stronger bond, but it seems like he cares more about training than he does about me." Deliah says.  
  
"Well, if it means anything, if you were with me, I would have a very difficult time training my Pokemon because I would be concentrating more on you." Samuel says.  
  
She looks at me then, tears welling up in her eyes. I hadn't realized that would touch her so deeply.  
  
"Oh Samuel..." she says.  
  
I smile as she leans over towards me and gives me a tender kiss on the lips. Startled, I don't push her away. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think she would ever kiss me. It was like I had always imagined it would be. Her lips were incredibly soft and warm. I felt like I could melt into her kiss. she parted from me, surprised at what hse had done.  
  
"Oh Samuel, I am so sorry. I didn't mean...I guess I just got overwhelmed by your sweetness. I've got to go." she says.  
  
She walks away quickly, in fear that she had embarrassed me and feeling a little self conscious herself.  
  
"Deliah..." I whisper.  
  
"You're the Cerelean City gym leader?" Giovanni shouts.  
  
The young woman before him frowned, recognizing him from the night before.  
  
"I should have known my poor choices were going to cost me. So, you're a trainer, are you? Well, my name is Patience. If you want the Cascade badge, you're going to have to beat me." she tells him.  
  
"I accept your challenge." he says.  
  
"I'll even take it easy on you. One Pokemon each." she says.  
  
"Are you going to talk all day or are you going to battle?" he shouts.  
  
The battle was over before it began. Giovanni sent out his Krabby, Patience her Wortortle.  
  
"Krabby, use your Leer attack!" Giovanni says.  
  
The small water type leered at his enemy, who only sneered at him.  
  
"Wortortle!" he shouts, as he sends Giovanni's Pokemon flying across the room with his Skull Bash attack.  
  
"Finish him off. Use Bubblebeam!" Patience says.  
  
"I can't believe this!" Giovanni says, as he watches his Krabby fall at his feet. Patience laughs.  
  
"Believe it, you lost. I'm surprised that you made it this far for being such a weak trainer." she told him.  
  
"I though you were going to take it easy on me." he says.  
  
"Just because of the other night? That meant nothing. I don't give any trainers pity in my gym. If you want my badge, you have to earn it. Why don't you come back when you get stronger?" she says.  
  
He felt like his jaw had hit the floor as she walked away. I can't believe I lost, Giovanni thought. He stood up straight and cleared his throat. I will not let this affect me, he told himself, I will be a Pokemon master...  
  
  
  
Patience was surprised to see another trainer so soon after her and Giovanni's battle.  
  
'What's your name?" she asks.  
  
"I'm Samuel Oak. I've come to ask you, to challenge you to a gym battle." Samuel says.  
  
"What nice manners you have, young man. Very admirable...I can only hope you put a little more backbone into our match." Patience says.  
  
"Now wait just a minute..." Samuel began.  
  
"Two Pokemon each. Let's go." she says.  
  
She sends out her first Pokemon, Goldeen. He sends out his Polywag.  
  
'Goldeen, use Peck." Patience says.  
  
"Polywag, use Hypnosis." Samuel says.  
  
Patience laughs. "Another weak triner. End this, Goldeen." she says.  
  
Both pokemon submerged themselves underwater as Goldeen charged towards Samuel's Pokemon. He dodged her attack quickly, putting her to sleep with his. Frustrated, Patience sent out his second Pokemon.  
  
"Wartortle!" he shouts, diving into the water.  
  
Samuel recalled his Polywag, and sent out his Ekans.  
  
"Your poison type doesn't stand a chance against my Wartortle. Wartortle, use Bubblebeam!" Patience says.  
  
Ekans deflected the water type's attack with his Poison Sting, then slithered around the small Pokemon with his Wrap attack.  
  
"Wartortle, no!" Patience shouts.  
  
She watches as Ekans finishes him off with his Bite attack, releasing him from his coils as Warortle fainted under the effect of the poison. Recalling her Pokemon, Patience congratulates him.  
  
"Congratulations, Samuel. I take back everything I said. I just didn't want you to think I was a pushover. Here is your badge. You earned it." she says.  
  
He took his two badges in hand and examined them. He petted both Polywag and Ekans, congratulating them as well.  
  
'We all earned these badges." he says.  
  
  
  
"So, where are we off to now? Are we going to stay in Cerelean City tonight or go back to Vermillion City?" Deliah asks.  
  
She jumped suddenly as Giovanni slammed his fist down on their table.  
  
"Could you be quiet for just a few minutes?! I'm trying to think!!" Giovanni shouts.  
  
She had never seen him so angry before. He was really taking this loss in the Cerelean City gym personally. He had barely spoken to her once he had returned, and had been deep in thought ever since.  
  
She wanted to tell him how sorry she was, but she knew it wasn't what he wanted to hear. He needed that badge to be able to challenge the last gym leader, and now he would have to try again once they finished their travels. She wished there was something she could do to ease his troubles, to take his mind off his loss. she looked up as he finally looked at her in a calm manner.  
  
"I've decided. I am not going to let this setback affect me. We have to be ready for the next gym. We're going to concentrate on training for the next couple days. We're going to go through Rock Tunnel to train." Giovanni says.  
  
"Rock Tunnel? Isn't that a dangerous route?" Deliah asks.  
  
Giovanni smiled. "It'll give me a chance to level up my Pokemon more and maybe even catch some more. You don't get anywhere in life doing things the easy way." Giovanni says.  
  
I made a mistake, Giovanni thought, but it won't happen again. 


	9. Agatha's return

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me.  
  
I decided to stay in Cerelean City for the night, but was unsure of where I was going to stay. I met a trainer at the pokemart who told me that I should check out two places in town- the Pokemon research lab near Cerelean Cape and the Pokemon daycare center just outside Saffron City. "They have a Pokemon daycare center there?' I ask. The trainer smiled. "A lot of trainers swear by the place, but the man at the cape told me that even though they gain attacks and levels there, the Pokemon you leave there don't gain any changes in their status. You might as well use rare candies, he told me." the scientist says. "This scientist sounds like he really knows a lot about Pokemon." I say. "You should go meet him. He likes helping out new trainers." he says. I wasted no time making my way to the scientist's cottage. I let my Pokemon out of their balls so that they could get some exercise and we had a great time. We enjoyed feeling the sun on our faces and inhaling the warm summer air. I don't think I'll ever get over seeing such sweet, even-tempered creatures use the incredible magical skills they possess to defeat their enemies. This is probably one of the things that fascinates me about Pokemon the most. It's something that Deliah and I always agreed on. I thought back on the kiss she gave me. I had dreamed of kissing her for ages, yet never expected it to happen. I sighed, reliving the experience over and over in my mind. My Pinsir stopped in his tracks suddenly and cried out to me. "What is it, Pinsir?" I ask. My Pokemon and I looked upon this larger than average Pokemon that I'd never seen before. It looked like a large rainbow winged bird, flapping it's wings wildly. I was frightened, but I commanded my Pokemon to prepare themselves for battle. My eyes widened as the strange animal spoke. "Wait!! Don't attack me! I'm not a Pokemon. This is just a costume; I'm a Pokemon researcher." it said. My Pokemon cried out in surprise when the large bird removed it's costumed head to reveal a young man in a lab coat. "I'm sorry if I frightened you and your Pokemon. My name is Forrest. This is a costume of Ho-Oh, a legendary Pokemon that very few have ever seen. I based my collage thesis upon research on this Pokemon, and developed this costume so that maybe I could learn more about this mysterious creature." Forrest says. I sighed with relief as he invited us into his home. I noticed that his home was sparcely decorated and he explained that belongings only cluttered the creativity of the mind. I was completely overwhelmed by his way of thinking. He was a perfect host. He served my Pokemon and I dinner, and showed me all the different experiments he was working on. "You have an interesting assortment of Pokemon with you. Most of the trainers I've met tend to train particular types." Forrest says. "I plan to be a Pokemon researcher myself, so I want to have the experience of training many different types at once." I say. I smiled, looking over at my Pokemon as they rested. My Polywag was nestled within the warmth of Ekan's coils, and my Kangashkan and Pinsir were sleeping soundly. We had had a long day. After our gym battle, we headed down towards the daycare center, where the nice couple that ran the place gave me a book on Pokemon training. "Very few young trainers take the time to level up their Pokemon by hand. This is our gift to you." they told me. I read the book as we walked back to Cerelean City, to get my bicycle at the bike shop. No more walking for me! One of the passages that inspired me the most was the one that said that one of the most important ways to create a lasting bond with your Pokemon was to share your leisurely activities with them. I decided to walk over to the lake near Mt.Moon and invite my Pokemon to go swimming with me. This delighted my companions, who dived in happily. I joined them shortly after, enjoyed splashing my Polywag who would shoot me playfully with his Water Gun attack. My Ekans slithered about in the cool mud near the water, while my Kangashkan bathed herself. My Pinsir decided to use his Seismic Toss tp pick up large rocks and toss them as far as he possibly could. The power of my Pokemon I had caught postively amazed me. I was honored to have them on my team.  
  
Giovanni seemed to be cheering up, but now Deliah was depressed. He was happy because his Nidoran male finally evolced to Nidorino after only a half hour of training, but she wanted to be outside where the sun was shining, not inside a dark, damp cavern where neither of them could see very well. "Stop complaining, Deliah. We'll be out of here before the sun goes down. These rock types won't harm you; I have my Krabby to protect you. He's going to evolve to Kingler soon, so he'll be a force to reckon with then." Giovanni saya. "I hope you're not just focusing on training your Krabby. The Vermillion City gym leader specializes in electric types." Deliah says. "I'm aware of theat. His name is Fane. He used to be in the military, and is completely no nonsense. I hope he can deal with me when I challenge him. His meager elctric types will be no match for my Pokemon." Giovanni says.  
  
June 5 I decided to get up extra early this morning so my Pokemon and I could get in some extensive training. I ran into this trainer that I had met at the Pokemon fan club meeting and he offered to help me level up my Pokemon. His were a few levels stronger than mine, so we had to work extra hard on our strategy to beat him. It wasn't long before all of them reached level twenty. "It looks like two of your Pokemon are close to being ready to evolve. I'll help you bring them up in levels more if you want." the trainer says. I knew which ones he meant, my Polywag and my Ekans. I looked over at them and saw that they looked exhausted, but were stil willing to battle. I knelt before the two of them and petted them both lovingly. "I don't want to push them too hard. Their feelings mean more to me than making them battle until they collaspe." I say. The trainer smiled. "That's very commendable. Okay well, I guess I'll be out here all afternoon if you want to battle some more." he says. I recall my tired Pokemon back to their pokeballs and make my way back to the Pokemon center. "Are you Samuel Oak?" the nurse at the counter asks. "Yes, that's me." I say. She smiled. "You have a visitor upstairs." she says. I smile back. "Thank you." I say. A visitor? I couldn't image who it could be, but I soon had my answer. "Samuel." she says. "Agatha!" I say. We rush into each other's arms, feeling like we'd be seperated for lifetimes. "I'm so glad I found you. The nurse told me you had been out all morning training and I didn't think I'd get to see you." she says. I took her into my arms and embraced her, kissing her in such a way that both of us felt like our knees would give out from underneath us. "It's such a nice surprise seeing you, Agatha. I thought you were out on the road training." I say. She laughs. "I am. I've been having my Kadabra teleport me me home every night from whereever I am. His Teleport is getting more accurate, he's usually gets me back to where I was within a couple blocks. How have you been doing, Samuel?" she asks. "Great! I've missed you, Agatha. Have you gotten my letters?" I ask. "Yes. Congratulations on winning your first badge! I'v emissed you too, Samuel. I plan to come see you battle at the Viridian Gym as soon as you qualify if you let me know when to be there. I wish I had seen your battle with Phelan. It would have been neat to see an Aerodactyl." Agatha says. "I was so surprised when I saw it that I nearly forgot about my strategy, but my Pokemon came through for me." I say. "Gastly!" her Pokemon chimed in. I laugh. "I see you're letting Gastly get his daily excercise. Hello, Gastly." I say. I hear the ghost pokemon laugh behind her, making us both laugh. "I definitely want you there when I win the Earthbadge. I won another badge yesterday." I say. "How many do you have now?" she asks. "Two, the Boulderbadge and the Cascadebadge." I say. "I heard Patience is one of the hardest gym leaders in the league. That must have been quite a battle." Agatha says. "It's funny you should say that. I didn't have that much trouble with her, but Giovanni did. She defeated him and refused to battle him again until he was stronger. She was in a very bad mood when we met. I'd assume he was rude to her." I say. "That wouldn't surprise me. I don't know how Deliah puts up with him." she says.  
  
Deliah was wondering about that too, as she slept uncomfortably on the ground inside Rock Tunnel. As much as I love him, sometimes I wonder if he considers anyone's feelings but his own.I understand that he needs to train his Pokemon, but it's not fair to put our health to risk at the same time. She sneezed, her socks wet from stepping into puddles she couldn't see. Deliah's shrill scream woke Giovanni from a sound sleep. "Deliah, what's the matter? Are you okay?" Giovanni shouts. He flashed on the front light of his moped to reveal what had frightened his companion. Looming over Deliah was his newly evolved Kingler. "Coogie, coogie!" the large crab Pokemon shouts. "Oh Giovanni, is this your little Krabby? Wow! You must have been training all night." she says. "Yes. I've only had about a hour's rest. I'm exhausted. I thought I would surprise you with them." Giovanni says. "Is he the only one that evolved?" Deliah asks. He pulled out two of his pokeballs, releasing the other two that had evolved as well. "Come on out and meet Deliah. Deliah, meet my Machoke and my Graveler." Giovanni says. "Machoke!" it cries happily, embracing her. "Graveler!" the other one says. She embraces them both. "Oh, they are so cute!! Congratulations, Giovanni." she says. He smiled. "Thanks. Let's get out of here and make out way to Lavender. I need to get some rest." Giovanni says. He recalls his Pokemon and takes her hand, squeezing it lovingly. "Meowth!" a nearby Pokemon cries. The two of them look over at the sound that had startled them. "Look Giovanni, a Meowth. You should try to catch him. They're supposed to be really strong when they evolve to Persian." Deliah says. Giovanni thought about it for a moment. "I don't know if it's worth my time to catch a normal type. He'd probably only be useful if he could talk." Giovanni says. Deliah laughed. "A talking Pokemon? Oh Giovanni, you say the funniest things." she says. He laughed too. "I guess you're right." he says.  
  
"So, you're going to stay and watch me challenge the Vermillion City gym leader?" I ask Agatha. She smiled. "Yes. I'll have Kadabra teleport me home tonight. Are you sure you're ready?" she asks. "I guess I am a little nervous. I know the futhur I get along in the league, the harder the gyms are going to be." I say. She smiles and rubs my shoulders. "Jusr relax. You'll be fine." she says. I sigh, relaxing under her touch.I was so glad that she was here with me. I hadn't realized how much I had missed her until I saw her again. My appointment with Fane wasn't until later that evening, so Agatha and I decided to go to Lavender Town for a couple hours. I playfully offered to carry her on her bicycle handlebars, but she insisted on using her Kadabra's Teleport to increase his accuracy. "I used my Fearow to fly here. Some of my other friends that are trainers give me a hard time about having him, but he was the first Pokemon I ever caught." Agatha says. "I remember. That was before you found out you had to weaken them. I remember you calling me from the doctor after you caught it. He pecked you up pretty good that day." I say. She laughs. "That's how I knew he would be a great addition to my team." she says. We teleported to Lavender Town and released her Gastly and Kadabra to play in Pokemon Tower with us. Pokemom Tower is one of Agatha's favorite places to visit in Kanto. It's where she caught her Gastly so many years ago and a place we liked to go to be alone together. The top floor of the tower was always vacant, due to people being afraid of all the ghost types. I could hear Gastly laughing in the background as we shared a private moment, making up for the lost time we'd missed together. "Well, well, look at the lovebirds. This isn't a love motel, you know." a voice says. We look up to see Giovanni and Deliah standing nearby. Agatha smiled. "Hi Deliah, Giovanni. What are you doing here?" she asks. "We were headed towards Vermillion, and saw the two of you sneaking up here. What a morbid place to make out." Giovanni says. Kadabra walked up to us and in front of Giovanni. "Kadabra!" he says. "It would be in your best interest to keep your spoon bending freak Pokemon away from em. I have enough muscle power on my side to put your ghosts to shame." Giovanni says. "Yeah. It's too bad all your normal attacks can't harm them...all that training for nothing!" Agatha says. "We'll just see about that!" Giovanni shouts. Deliah wished us a good day just as Giovanni grabs her hand roughly, leading her away. "You really hold your own against him, Agatha. Maybe that's why I love you so much." I say. She smiles. "I love you too, Samuel." Agatha says. 


	10. Fane and the emergance of new pokemon

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me. author's note-the meowth in the last part was just a lark I cooked up for kicks. The Meowth that follows TR around doesn't make his true appearance until *The Story Of Team Rocket* the second book in this series.  
  
It was time. It was time for me to face the third gym leader of the Kanto League, Fane of the Vermillion city gym. Agatha squeezed my hand lovingly as we entered the gym, unsure of what to expect. It was very dark, and we had to feel around to get our bearings.  
  
Agatha and I looked around in surprise as the gym's lights suddenly flashed on, revealing a very tall man in full military costume with a whip in his hand.  
  
"Welcome. My name is Fane. I welcome your challenge, young warrior. Samuel Oak, I'll presume?" he asks.  
  
"Yes, that's me." I say.  
  
He smiles. "Two Pokemon each! Go, Electrabuzz!" Fane says.  
  
Fane releases his Electrabuzz, who appears with a show of his immense eletrical power and a threatening cry.  
  
"Then I choose Kangashkan!" I say.  
  
My Kangashkan appearedwith a cry as well, ready for battle. The two Pokemon eyed each other wearily, awaiting their commands.  
  
'Electrabuzz, use your Metronome!" Fane commands.  
  
The surprise of this attack stopped me in my tracks.  
  
"Metronome?" I ask.  
  
I watched as the yellow and black striped Pokemon waved his fingers back and forth for a moment before they started to glow...both Agatha and I gasped as a massive tidal wave appeared from nowhere, washing over my Pokemon.  
  
"Kangashkan!" I exclaim.  
  
Before I could command her to retailate, Fane had already issued commands to his. His Electrabuzz picked up my water weakened Pokemon and used his SeismicToss to throw her across the gym. angry, I recalled my fainted Pokemon, taking a moment to fiqure out what I should do.  
  
"I send out my Pinsir." I say.  
  
Fane's laughter echoed through the gym.  
  
"Your bug type may be strong, but he cannot compete with the strength of my Pokemon. Electrabuzz, use your Thunderpunch." Fane commands.  
  
I couldn't watch, covering my eyes with my hands. I felt Agatha's hands on mine.  
  
"Samuel, look." she says.  
  
What I saw was that Pinsir had dodged his enemy's attack and now the two animals were testing each other's strength in hand to hand combat.  
  
"Pinsir, use your Cut attack!" I shout.  
  
He forcefully pushes Electrabuzz away from him, using his Cut attack to inflict a great deal of damage.  
  
"Electrabuzz, use your Mega Kick." Fane says.  
  
"Pinsir, use your Seismic Toss." I say.  
  
Pinsir artfully caught Electrabuzz's leg as it swung up to hit him, picking him up and throwing him forcefully across the gym. Fane applauded.  
  
"Nice work. Let's see if he can withstand my Lickitung." Fane says.  
  
Giovani and Deliah walked into the gym just as Fane sent out his last Pokemon.  
  
"I didn't know there was a battle going on now...Giovanni, isn't that Samuel?" Deliah asks.  
  
Giovanni smirked as he realized it too, his Nidorino and Nidorina by his side.  
  
"This should prove interesting to watch." Giovanni says.  
  
His two Pokemon spied an object poking out of Samuel's backpack that gained their interest, and walked over to investigate. Seeing that there were others inhis gym, Fane put the battle on hold for a moment, calling out to the newcomers.  
  
"You there! You are interfering in a gym match. If you are trainers, you would be well advised to stay on the sidelines or forfeit your right to challenge me later on." Fane says.  
  
Giovanni pulled out two of his pokeballs to recall his two small poison types.  
  
"Nidorino, Nidorina, return!" he shouts.  
  
They refused, fixated on their newfound treasure. they touched it at the same time, scrying out as they began to glow.  
  
"My moon stone!" I exclaim.  
  
The five of us stared as the two small Pokemon stopped glowing to reveal much larger animals, a Nidoquuen and a Nidoking. Fane was not impressed.  
  
"I will not warn you a third time. Recall your Pokemon and watch the battle quietly." Fane exclaims.  
  
Giovanni was finally able to recall his newly evolved Pokemon, and he and Deliah went and sat down in the corner of the room to watch. How dare that overgrown musclehead issue commands to him and Deliah like they were no better than their Pokemon, he thought. He watched Deliah as she watched Samuel finish his gym battle, Fane's Lickitung against his Pinsir.  
  
"Lickitung, use your Fire Blast!" Fane exclaims.  
  
It was too late to issue commands. Fane was faster than I was. Gasps filled the gym as Pinsir somehow deflected his enemy's attack.  
  
"He must have just learned Harden! Pinsir, use your Bind attack!" I shout.  
  
The angry bug type used Bind to keep his enemy from attacking, barraging the normal type with his Cut attack.  
  
"Pinsir, use your Seismic Toss before Bind wears off." I say.  
  
He attempted to lift up the large pink Pokemon, but was stopped by Lickitung's Lick attack.  
  
"Oh no, he's paralyzed." Deliah whispers.  
  
Giovanni frowned at her. "Be quiet." he whispers.  
  
Not wanting to let me or himself down, he shakily pushed himself through his status condition, lifting up his enemy and throwing him forcefully across the gym.  
  
"You won!" Agatha says, happily.  
  
Frowning, Giovanni followed Deliah over where I was, where she gave me a quick embrace to congratulate me. I blushed furiously  
  
"Thank you, Deliah." I say.  
  
Fane shook my hand roughly, handing me my newly won badge.  
  
"For you, the Thunderbadge. You earned it." Fane says.  
  
I smiled. "Thanks." I say.  
  
  
  
Giovanni smirked. Despite his loss at he last gym, watching Samuel's match with Fane confirmed his suspicions.  
  
"This guy is going to be a pushover. If Samuel could beat him with a bug and a ground type, when I battle Fane, it's going to be over before it starts." Giovanni says.  
  
Deliah wanted to tell him not to get his hopes up too high, but she knew he wouldn't listen. Thinking about it, she decided he was right, he did have an advantage. All of his Pokemon were already at level thirty, and his newly evolved Machoke and Graveler were shoo-ins to win.  
  
The two of them entered Fane's gym and jumped as he cracked his whip in front of them.  
  
"You there! You're the couple that interrupted my gym battle earlier this afternoon. What do you have to say for yourself?" Fane asks.  
  
"We didn't mean to. We didn't know there was a battle in progress." Deliah says.  
  
Giovanni smirked. "Don't give him the satisfaction, Deliah. He's just overcompensating for his lack of intelligence." he says.  
  
"You've got a lot of nerve coming into my gym and insulting me. Are you here to challenge me or waste my time?" Fane asks.  
  
"I'm ready to battle whenever you are." Giovanni says.  
  
"Two Pokemon each. I'll start with Magnemite." Fane says.  
  
Giovanni smiled. "Then I send out my Graveler." he says.  
  
Fane applauded. 'Very nice. I see you've done your research, but I guess I need to show you what you can't learn in books. Magnemite, use your Supersonic!" Fane commands.  
  
Giovanni's newly evolved rock type grunted as the small metal Pokemon hit him with his Supersonic, causing him to become confused.  
  
"Shake it off, Graveler. Use your Defense Curl." Giovanni says.  
  
'I thought this was going to be a challenge. Magnemite, use Toxic." Fane says.  
  
"I didn't know Magnemite could learn that." Delaih commented, as the poison took it's effect on Graveler.  
  
"Be quiet! I'm not beaten yet!" Giovanni shouts.  
  
"You will be within time. What a laughable trainer you are! I haven't had such a good laugh in ages.!" Fane laughs.  
  
Giovanni frowned. "Graveler, use your Self Destruct!" he shouts.  
  
Both Fane and his Magnemite's eyes widened as an encompassing glow filled the gym, taking both Pokemon down in the aftermath.  
  
"How desperate! Sacrificing one of your own Pokemon to take out mine? I guess I'm going to have to introduce you to my other Pokemon. Come on out, Wigglytuff!" Fane says.  
  
Giovanni fell to the ground laughing as he saw the large pink Pokemon bound into the arena, noticably irratated at his reaction to her entrance.  
  
"Wiggly!!" she shouts.  
  
Giovanni stops laughing long enough to send out his second Pokemon.  
  
"Finish this, Machoke." he laughs.  
  
The two Pokemon stared each other down, awaiting their commands.  
  
"Machoke, use your Mega Punch!" Giovanni commanded.  
  
Wigglytuff reeled from the impact of the larger Pokemon's attack, countering with ehr Doubleslap attack. Angry, he shoved her away with his Mega Kick.  
  
"Wigglytuff, use your Sing attack!" Fane says.  
  
That was the attack that knocked Deliah and I out at the Pewter City Pokemon Center, Giovanni thought. He saw his Machoke's knees begin to wobble and knew he had to do something quick.  
  
'Machoke, use your Mimic attack!" Giovanni says.  
  
Machoke began to sing as well, distracting Fane's Pokemon from her song.  
  
"Finish this! Use Fissure!!" Giovanni says.  
  
Fane gasped as he watched his last Pokemon go down. Giovanni smiled.  
  
'Looks like I won after all." he says.  
  
Fane shook his head in disbelief. "I don't know how a rookie trainer got so many advanced technical machines, but I admit defeat. You won the Thunderbadge." Fane says.  
  
Deliah embraced Giovanni, the two of them sharing a warm smile.  
  
  
  
  
  
It was so nice having Agatha with me today that it was hard for me to let her go. we ended our night together on thr shoreline of Vermillion City's beach watching the stars and holding each other.  
  
"I'd forgotten how good it feels to kiss you, to hold you, to be with you, Agatha. I know it's only been a week, but it seems like a lifetime." I say.  
  
She sat back on the sand. 'I feel the same way. Thank you for today. It meant a lot to me." Agatha says.  
  
I stretched out next to her, taking her into my arms. "I'm glad you got to see me win my third badge. As long as I think of you, I can overcome any obstacle." I say.  
  
She touches my face gently. "You are so sweet, Samuel. I do have to go home tonight, but i'm not in a hurry unless you want to get rid of me." Agatha says.  
  
I smile, leaning towards her to look into her eyes. "I'm not in a hurry either, Agatha." I say.  
  
I could think of no more perfect moment for Agatha and I to be together than under the stars as I pressed her body against mine, claiming her lips in a long, passionate kiss...  
  
  
  
  
  
Tonight was the first night that Deliah and I had been alone since my dalliance with Patience, the Cerelean City gym leader. I had to admire the woman's conniving nature, but it was Deliah that I truly wanted to be with. We decided to skip staying at the Pokemon center to have some time alone in the underground path just outside Saffron City, our next destination. We curled up together in our sleeping bags, with me holding her in my arms.  
  
'You don't think anybody will come through tonight, do you, Giovanni?" Deliah asks.  
  
I smiled and embraced her. "Not until tommorrow morning. Don't worry." I told her.  
  
She seemed comforted by that, and moved closer to me. I could feel her body heat, and recalled the cute outfit she'd changed into at the Pokemon center, a purple floral top and short purple miniskirt.  
  
"Deliah, did I tell how cute you looked today?" I ask her.  
  
She laughed softly, feeling self conscious.  
  
"Thank you." she says, blushing.  
  
I looked up into her eyes for a moment before I pressed my lips against hers. i felt her arms go around my neck as she moved her body against mine. she gingerly reached into my open shirt to touch my chest gently and I moaned softly, feeling her pressing against me.  
  
"Deliah, i love you so much." I say.  
  
She smiled. "I love you too, Giovanni.' she says.  
  
  
  
  
  
June 6  
  
Before I left for the next town, I checked my map to see what my next destination was. Saffron City, home of the fighting Pokemon gym. According to the guide book I had, this gym leader's name was Raissa, another female trainer who specialized in fighting type Pokemon. i heard some trainers around me talking about the same thing.  
  
'I heard he had a hard time at Raissa's gym. Her fighting type are tough. I'm going to try to catch myself a pyschic type Pokemon." one young woman says.  
  
"I'm sorry for interrupting, but I couldn't help but overhear. Why a psychic type?" I ask.  
  
"Because fighting types are vulnerable to psychic attacks, plue it helps round out your team if you're trying to balance them out. What kind of Pokemon do you have?" she asks.  
  
"Let's see...a ground type, a water type, a poison type, a bug type, and a flying type." I tell her.  
  
She laughed. "That sounds good. There's lots of interesting Pokemon just past Diglett's Cave to the east. You might want to check it out." she says.  
  
"Thanks. I'll do that." I say.  
  
I sigh happily and deeply inhale the clean afternoon breeze as I walked outside. I decided to release my Ekans and Pidgeotto, the small bird perching on my shoulder. I let my Ekans coil himself around my shoulders, hoping he and my Pidgeotto would get along okay. At first I could hear the two of them chattering at each other, but I guess they decided to be friendly for my sake.  
  
Once we got into the tall grass, Ekand slithered down, enjoying the feeling of the cool earth. I smiled and looked around me.  
  
"I guess we'll train for awhile, then we'll have a picnic. What do you think, Pidgeotto?" I asks.  
  
It chattered happily, flying down to rest on my wrist. I turned as I saw Ekans rise up from the grass, hissing at something.  
  
"What is it, Ekans?" I ask.  
  
I peered into the grass to see a Pokemon that wasn't quite familiar to me. It was slightly taller than my Ekans, with fur the color of half brown, half tan, with a long wrinkled nose. It just stood there, staring at the three of us.  
  
"What kind of Pokemon is that?" I wondered out loud.  
  
Ekans, being even more curious than me, decided to attack it. He launched his Poison Sting attack.  
  
"Drowzee!" the small Pokemon cried, before it suddenly disappeared.  
  
"Ekans?" my Pokemon cried, looking around for his adversary.  
  
"Drowzee?" I say.  
  
I assumed it had used it's Teleport to escape from my poison type, which meant he must be a psychic type. I decided then and there that I would try to capture it, seeing it reappear before my Pokemon.  
  
"Ekans, use your Wrap attack!" I tell him.  
  
Just as my Pokemon lunged towards his enemy, he teleported to safety once again, reappearing behind my Ekans, using his Pound attack to conterattack him. I could see that Ekans was getting frustrated, and I wasn't sure what to do next. Within moments, my question was answered for me.  
  
"Ekans!" he cries out, angerily.  
  
My eyes widened as i watched him burst out in a fierce glow before me, changing from the small snake I had captured into a large, terrifying cobra.  
  
"Arbok!!" he roared.  
  
Frightened, the Drowzee started to use his Hypnosis attack, only to be stopped in his tracks by my Pokemon's Glare attack. Paralyzed and unable to attack, I decided to throw my pokeball. My Arbok watched happily as the ball stopped shaking so that i could retrieve my newest capture.  
  
"Great job, Arbok!" I told him, petting him affectionately.  
  
"Ar!" he panted happily. 


	11. Mikado and Snorlax

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me.  
  
I pulled out all of my pokeballs.  
  
"Come out everyone and meet our newest friend." I say.  
  
I released all of them together, each of my Pokemon saying hello to Drowzee in their own way. Happy at being greeted so warmly, he made all of us laugh by teleprting himself and my Pidgeotto that was perched on his head to various places close by. I thought my Pidgeotto would be upset, but he liked perching on the small Pokemon.  
  
"Listen everybody, we're going to go for our fourth badge today, the Marshbadge. The gym leader there I've been told trains fighting type, so we need to be at peak performance. Are you ready for a workout?" I ask them.  
  
I was greeted with as much euthasium as I had hoped for and prepared myself mentally for a long day of training. I decided to go battle some trainers I had seen fishing down by the decks. My Pinsir had to use it's Cut attack to cut down some bushes to get us there, but it was worth it. The fishermen were a little taken aback at my interrupting their catches, but were more than happy to battle. One guy told me not to get too worn out, to take my Pokemon for a swim midafternoon when there were multitudes of Tentacool in the water.  
  
"Tentacool?" I ask.  
  
He smiled. "That's when my Seaking and I surf together. I love the way their tentacles tickle." he says.  
  
I had to agree, it did sound good. Maybe we would do that after our gym battle. He also told me of a foolproof way to level up my Pokemon quickly.  
  
"There's a sleeping Pokemon just up the way that's at level thirty, a Snorlax. His trainer charges a small fee to wake him up to battle other trainers. it'll help you evolve your Polywag and your Drowzee." he says.  
  
"Thanks." I told him.  
  
It didn't take me long to find this young man, sitting lotus style on the wharf next to an enormous emerald green Pokemon.  
  
"Greetings, fellow trainer. My name is Mikado and this is my Snorlax. Have you come to battle with me?" he asks.  
  
I looked up at the creature, whose face I could barely make out over the sheer size of his huge stomach. Sensing my hesitation, Mikado smiled.  
  
"Yes, his size is a little itimidating, but trust me, he's a very lovable Pokemon, at least to me. All he does is eat, sleep and battle. He's very low maintance." he says.  
  
"How long have you had him?" I ask.  
  
"I caught him a few years ago in the Safari Zone. It was an accident really. A schoolmate and I went there for a picnic and this Snorlax here came up to us for food. There were signs all around saying not to feed any of the Pokemon that might wander up to you, but I guess I thought it was too cute to refuse. An Ultra Ball I had just bought fell out of my pocket and I caught him! We've been insepearable ever since. Some trainers think I'm mean to battle trainers with him for money, but Snorlax genuinely enjoys battling. so, how about it?" he asks.  
  
I took one last look at his Pokemon, making the decision quickly on what I should do. I smiled at my new friend.  
  
"Okay, let's battle!" I say.  
  
Giovanni looks so peaceful when he's sleeping, so different than he looks normally, the anxious, moody boyfriend I've gotten used to over the years, Deliah thought. I hope he doesn't mind that I let his Pokemon out of their balls. Once I told them to be quiet so he could rest, they all curled up next to me as I fed them and gave them some water. The sheer size of some of them intimidated me a little, but not for long when they showed me how affectionate they could be. Giovanni rarely lets them out of their balls, except to battle or perform some task for him. He never shows them any kind of affection, but they are loyal to him. He really makes me sad in a way, that he can't see them the way I do, as the loving creatures they are.  
  
As his Pokemon laid next to me, keeping me warm with their body heat, I decided to check my Pokemon guide book to see who the next gym leader was. I found out our next destination was Saffron City, and the gym leader was Raissa, who trained fighting types.  
  
"Fighting types?" Deliah asks.  
  
"Yes, like my Machoke. Honestly, have you been reading that book all morning?" Giovanni asks.  
  
"Good morning. I didn't know you had woke up." Deliah says.  
  
"I couldn't sleep between you talking to yourself and the noise the Pokemon were making. I'm surprised you could be so inconsiderate." Giovanni says.  
  
She opened her mouth to defend herself, but decided it wasn't worth it.  
  
"Well, as long as I'm awake, we might as well head out and get a start on our day. By the end of this day, I will have the Marshbadge." Giovanni says.  
  
  
  
I watched in amazement as Mikado pulled out a small flute and began to play a tune. I heard his Snorlax begin to grumble sleepily and stand up to a towering almost seven feet tall.  
  
"I hope you're not having second thoughts. He hates being woken up for no reason." he says.  
  
I pulled out one of my pokeballs.  
  
"No, I'm ready. Go, Drowzee!" I say.  
  
I release my Drowzee into battle, who doesn't the less bit concerned about his opponent's size. i wasn't about to allow Snorlax to attack first.  
  
"Drowzee, use your Poison Gas!" I tell him.  
  
"Snore?" the large Pokemon cried, as a cloud of smoke surrounded him, causing him to become poisoned.  
  
"Impressive! Inflicting a status condition as your opening move, but I'm afraid you've only upset him. Snorlax, use Pay Day!" he says.  
  
I was vaguely familiar with this attack. It was like a Slash attack, only it made it so coins would rain down after the attack was excuted. I assumed this was another way Mikado earned money from trainers.  
  
"Drowzee, use your Teleport!" I told him.  
  
"Drowzee!" he moaned, teleporting out of the way just as Snorlax attacked. Mikado smiled and applauded.  
  
"So entertaining! I rarely enjoy battles as much as this! Snorlax, use Earthquake." he commands.  
  
"Drowzee, use Disable." I say.  
  
My pyshic type's Disable attack kept Snorlax from being able to attack. Frustrated at not being able to get a hit in, i saw Snorlax yawn and begin to wave his arms. Mikado smiled, realizing Snorlax's intention.  
  
"Snorlax, Body Slam attack!" he shouts.  
  
I jump to safety as the massive giant slammed down on top of my Pokemon, trapping him under his stomach. I could hear my Pokemon cry out for release and I hoped that somehow I could help him. Both mine and Mikado's eyes widened as all of the sudden Snorlax began to levitate just high enough for my Pokemon to escape, and I noticed that he had evolved from being trapped underneath him.  
  
"Hypno!!" he shouts, pulling out a small trinket on a chain.  
  
I was not familiar with this Pokemon either, but this evolution was a big change from when I had caught him. He was slightly taller with sunshine yellow fur, short pointy ears and a ring of soft white fur around his neck. I watched fascinated as Snorlax watched the trinket rock back and forth, allowing it to hypnotise him. I cheered as Snorlax fell back to the ground, falling asleep.  
  
"Looks like I've won." I told him.  
  
Mikado smiled. "Oh no...this battle has only gotten started..." he says.  
  
  
  
Giovanni and Deliah took in their Pokemon to the Saffron City Pokemon Center to make sure they were fully healed for their gym battle.  
  
"You should bring them to the Pokemon centers more often. It'll help them gain more health points each time they gain a level if you don't use potions as often." the nurse says.  
  
Giovanni frowned at her. "Are you a trainer?" he asks.  
  
"Well, I have my Chansey if that counts, but no, I'm not a trainer. Why?" she asks.  
  
"Well, I am and I'm training these Pokemon my own way. Unless you intend on working just as hard as I am to become a Pokemon master, you would be well advised to do your own job and let me do mine." Giovanni told her.  
  
Watching him as he stormed away, the nurse turned to Deliah.  
  
"I'll assume you're his traveling companion...is he always like that?" she asks.  
  
Deliah sighed. "Not always. He's just moody, that's all. He's very determained to succeed." she says.  
  
"Well, i wish you both luck. I can only hope that caring for so many Pokemon will eventually change his attitude for the better." the nurse says.  
  
"I hope so too." Deliah says.  
  
  
  
"What do you mean?" I ask.  
  
"By putting my Snorlax back to sleep, you've given me the advantage. Snorlax, use Rest." he says.  
  
I knew what effect this attack had, and was partially thankful for it. It gave me time to think about my strategy, while his Pokemon recovered all it's hit points. It was still poisoned, however, so I decided to try something new.  
  
"Hypno, return. Go, Polwag. Use your Bubblebeam." I say.  
  
It took three turns before Snorlax woke back up and I took those turns inflicting damage on my opponent. He was down to half of his hit points, and soaking wet from my water type's attack.  
  
"Teach that little water type a lesson. Use your Thunder bolt attack!" Mikado shouted.  
  
I hadn't known a Snorlax could learn special attacks. I heard my Polwag shriek as he was consumed by the electric attack, trying to ground them out by placing his tail onto the ground.  
  
"Polywag, return." I tell him, not wanting him to suffer.  
  
He refused to return, as he too began to glow, evolving into a much larger creature with two arms and a tail.  
  
"Polywhirl!" he exclaims.  
  
Before I knew it, he jumped up to face Snorlax and used his Doubleslap attack to slap him silly for the previous attack. Snorlax countered with Mega Punch, finally knocking my exhausted Pokemon out cold.  
  
"Two evolutions, that's wonderful. Congratulations!" Mikado says.  
  
"Thanks, but I'm not finished yet. Polywhirl, return! Come on out, Kangashkan." I say.  
  
"Kangash!" she cries, ready for battle.  
  
Both Mikado and I could see his Snorlax staggering about from the effect of the poison and I knew it was time to finally finish this battle.  
  
"Kangashkan, use your Thunderbolt!" I shout.  
  
"Snorlax!!" it shouted, feeling the impact even more from being soaked from Polywhirl's attack.  
  
It staggered again for a second, and finally fell to the ground for the last time. Mikado smiled and shook my hand profusely.  
  
"I am honored to have lost to such a magnificent trainer as you. Thank you." he says.  
  
  
  
Having spent so much time together on the road, Deliah could sense Giovanni's irratation growing with each passing second.He was in a worse mood than usual today, and all the noise around them in the Pokemon Center didn't help. His appointment with Raissa wasn't for a couple hours, and there was much excitement going on around them.  
  
"What's everybody cheering about?" Deliah asks.  
  
"The Poke Cup started today." one boy says.  
  
"The Poke Cup? What's that?" she asks.  
  
"It's an international soccer competition where trainers and their Pokemon compete together." he told her.  
  
Deliah smiled. "That sounds interesting. What do you think, Giovanni?" she asks him.  
  
"I think it's a waste of time, playing sports with Pokemon. Useless." he grunts.  
  
She chose to ignore as he stormed away to get them some lunch. She smiled again as someone familiar walked into the center.  
  
"Samuel!" she says.  
  
He smiled. "Deliah! What a nice surprise. When did you get here?" he asks.  
  
"About an hour ago. We stopped by here after making an appointment at Safron Gym. Giovanni is upset because he found out the gym leader was a woman. I'm glad you're here. I wanted to apolgize to you for his two Pokemon borrowing your moon stone." Deliah says.  
  
"No big deal. It seems he got more use out of it than I did. I'm looking forward to my gym battle myself. I captured a pyschic type just for the occassion." he says.  
  
"A pyschic type? I'd love to see him." Deliah told him.  
  
"Okay." he says.  
  
He pulled out one of his pokeballs, releasing his Hypno.  
  
"Hypno!" it exclaims.  
  
"Oh Samuel, it's so cute." she says.  
  
"Hypno!" he cried, pulling out his charm, waving it before Deliah's eyes.  
  
"No Hypno, don't do that!" Samuel told him.  
  
Deliah felt her eyelids suddenly begin to feel heavy. "I'm starting to feel a little sleepy..." she whispers.  
  
"Deliah!" Samuel says.  
  
He caughr her as she fell, recalling his Hypno before he could hynotise anyone else.  
  
"Deliah! Are you okay? Deliah!" he asks.  
  
He leaned over her in his arms, concerned about the effects of his Pokemon's attack.  
  
He could tell that she was only sleeping because he could feel her faint breath on his face. He touched her face gently, hoping she would wake up soon.  
  
"How many times have I told you to stay away from my girlfriend?" Giovanni shouts.  
  
Samuel looked up at his rival and frowned.  
  
"At least I was here to protect her when she fainted." he says.  
  
"You wouldn't have to be if your Pokemon hadn't attacked her." Giovanni shouts.  
  
"It's okay, Giovanni. His Hypno didn't mean to harm me intentionally." Deliah says, waking up.  
  
Giovanni walked over to her and pulled her to her feet.  
  
"You I'll deal with later. As for you, Samuel, if I see you around her again, you're going to have to deal with me, understand?" he warns.  
  
"You're just fortunate that she gives you the time of day." Samuel says.  
  
"I won't warn you again, Samuel, I mean it." Giovanni says, walking away.  
  
Deliah sighed as Giovanni joined her, waving apolgically at Samuel. I wish the two of them didn't dislike each other so much. They could learn so much from each other. 


	12. Raissa and big changes

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me. Author's note-Yes, Deliah, Giovanni's companion in this story is indeed the mother of young Ash. I forgot to mention that! Shame on me! I guess I fiqured my readers would just know...well, I just thought I would include a warning with this chapter. There is a slight love scene in this chapter, nothing major. It is not dirty, but you get the idea. Please read and review, and if you have been reading without reviewing, please review!! Thanks!  
  
I walked out of the center to avoid a conflict with Giovanni and decided to go to the Pokemart for some supplies. I bought a six pack of soda for my Pokemon and I to share, a brand Agatha had told me ehances their strength naturally. I decided to go to Raissa's gym early to see if she was battling anyone else. I jumped back at the entrance as I was greeted by a large Scyther.  
  
"Scyther!" it cried, it's razor sharp arms flailing about wildly.  
  
"Scyther, stop that! Return to your training position." a voice called him.  
  
My eyes fell upon a young woman with long scarlet ponytails in an excercise outfit nearby. She was very short and slender, and very pretty. Taking a towel from the hands of one of her Pokemon, she draped it around her shoulders and walked over to greet me.  
  
"Hello. My name is Raissa and this is my gym. Did you come for a workout?" she asks.  
  
"A workout?" I ask.  
  
She smiled. "Yes. I train fighting types here, among others. If you've come for a Pokemon battle, you must prove your strength." she says.  
  
"I don't understand." I say.  
  
"It's pretty simple, actually. In this gym, trainer and Pokemon fight together in order to win my badge. Our Pokemon will fight each other, and you and I will fight as well." she says.  
  
"I've never heard of such a thing. You actually physically battle challengers yourself?" I ask.  
  
She smiled. "I may look weak, but you can trust me, I'm not. Do you accept my conditions?" she asks.  
  
I looked her over for a moment. I wasn't much of a fighter, but I could hold my own. I knew I had to win, but I didn't want to hurt her.  
  
"Do you need time to warm up?" she offers.  
  
I shook my head. "No. I accept your challenge." I say.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Deliah, I think we need to have a little talk." Giovanni says.  
  
The two of them had gotten a room at a nearby home that took in traveling Pokemon trainers. She was tired and wanted to change, and was in no mood to talk at the moment, but the look on Giovanni's face was dead serious.  
  
"Is this about Samuel, because what happened today wasn't his fault, really it wasn't." she says.  
  
"No. This is about you, Deliah. What is going on with you and him anyway? I realize you've been friends for a long time, but I don't like it when I see you with him. Do you have feelings for him?" he asks.  
  
"Giovanni, what a silly thing to ask! If I liked him, he and I would be traveling together, not you and I. The only person I want to be with is you, my love." she says.  
  
His eyes softened as he sat down next to her on the bed.  
  
"I'm sorry. I guess I overreacted. I guess I'm just possessive of you, that's all." he says.  
  
"You don't have to be. I'm all yours, Giovanni." she says.  
  
He looked into her eyes then and smiled.  
  
"All mine, huh?" he asks.  
  
She recognized that look in his eyes, it was a look he only had every once in awhile. She smiled as he leaned in towards her and pushed her down on the bed, holding her hands captive over her head.  
  
"Giovanni." she whispers.  
  
"You make it awfully hard to be a gentleman, my love, as tempting as you are." he told her.  
  
She smiled as he kissed her roughly, pressing his body against hers....  
  
  
  
I know that I am ready for this battle, but I have to admit I feel a little awkward going into hand to hand combat with this young woman. She doesn't seem uncomfortable, so I guess I won't be either.  
  
"Go, Scyther!" she says.  
  
"Go, Hypno!" I say.  
  
Her Scyther apeeared with a cry, raising it's arms into the air threatingly. Raissa smiled at me and fell into a defensive stance.  
  
"Scyther, use your Double Team." she commands.  
  
"Hypno?" he cries, getting confused at all the Scythers surrounding him.  
  
Raissa took the element of surprise to make her first attack, achieving a clean blow to the chest. Falling to the gym floor, I raised myself to my knees.  
  
"Hypno, use Disable!" I told him.  
  
He did as he was told, disabling the large green insect from using it's evasive technique.  
  
"Scyther, use your Focus Energy." Raissa says.  
  
Rising to my feet, I lunged at Raissa, the two of us struggling against each other.  
  
It was easy fighting her and commanding my Pokemon at the same time. I needed to get a hit in on her bug type before it used it's focused energy to take out my Hypno.  
  
"Hypno, use your Headbutt." I told him.  
  
Now it was my turn, as my Pokemon and I attacked at the same time. Hypno charged towards the Scyther, headbutting him in the chest. I forced Raissa's hands together and shoved her to the floor. She smiled.  
  
"I'm impressed. I underestimated you. Scyther, use your Quick Attack." she commands.  
  
"Hypno, return. Go, Pidgeotto!" I shout.  
  
My small flying type avoided it's enemy's attack by soaring into the air away from him. I knew that despite it's size, my Pidgeotto had an advantage over her Pokemon. I remembered something I had learned in school; that Scyther were able to fly but not very well.  
  
"Pidgeotto, use your Gust attack!" I tell her.  
  
"Scyth!" her Pokemon cried, as my Pokemon blew him across the gym.  
  
"Scyther, return! Go, Rhydon!" she says.  
  
As Raissa finally rose to her feet, we once again lunged at each other as my small bird flew about Rhydon's head, confusing him.  
  
"Don't let him get the best of you, Rhydon. Use your Horn Attack." Raissa says.  
  
Pidgeotto sqwaked loudly under the impact of the large rock type's attack, falling to the ground.  
  
"Rhydon, use your Stomp attack." she says.  
  
I was not about to let that beast stomp on my small Pokemon. My fears of her being crushed were soon gone, as she was soon enveloped in a bright light, changing right before our eyes. When I saw the size difference between Pidgeotto and her new evolution, I knew I had a chance to win. I used the opportunity of distraction to finally overpower Raissa, causing her to fall to the floor for the last time. We struggled each other on the floor, equal in our strength.  
  
"Very few male trainers your age are strong enough to overwhelm me, usually they're distracted by my being a woman." she grunts.  
  
"I don't want to hurt you to prove myself as a trainer, but I won't back down from winning a Pokemon battle. My Pokemon and I work hard to win our badges the honorable way." I say.  
  
"I can respect that, but I don't give up that easily. Rhydon, use your Tail Whip." she told him.  
  
I could see that this was a last ditch effort to distract my newly evolved Pidgeot, but it was too late.  
  
"Pidgeot, let's finish this. Use your Wing attack." I told her.  
  
Rhydon roared as my Pokemon flew about him, barraging him with her attack. Now that it was dizzy and confused, I called out my last attack.  
  
"Pidgeot, use your Whirlwind!" I shout.  
  
I had taken a chance calling out this command, hoping that despite her beast's size, that my Pidgeot could inflict some damage. I cheered as her Rhydon finally passed out under the velocity of my Pokemon's attack.  
  
"Rhydon, no!" she cries.  
  
It was time to finish my battle with Raissa as well, not allowing her to get up by body slamming her to the floor, knocking the wind out of her.  
  
"I give, I give! You earned the Marshbadge!" she pants loudly.  
  
I smiled and helped her to her feet.  
  
" Thanks." I say.  
  
  
  
I will not allow any lingering doubts about Deliah's feelings for Samuel distract me from winning this next bedge, Giovanni thought. It's pretty obvious from the way she responded to me earlier that she truly does have feelings for me. Shaking his doubts away, he walked into the gym. What he found there surprised him. He had been told by the reception desk that the gym leader was a woman, but he hadn't expected her to be so cute.  
  
"Well, isn't this a pleasant surprise. I was informed of the conditions of our battle when I registered, but tell me again, how is this supposed to be tough for me? It's going to be very pleasant working you out." Giovanni smirks.  
  
"Welcome. You must be Giovanni. I was told that you had a smart mouth. I may look cute, but trust me, it's mot likely that you'll win against me seeing as though you're a pervert like all the rest. Send out your first Pokemon. Two Pokemon each." she says.  
  
"I call upon my Nidoking." Giovanni says.  
  
"Then I choose Hitmonchan. Let's go." she says.  
  
the four adversaries stood side by side, sizing each other up before making their first move. Giovanni smirked, this is going to be a breeze, he thought. I haven't met a woman yet that didn't fall for my charm, and I can disable her stragedy quickly, winning the match and getting something else in return at the same time. i rather enjoy the thrill of the chase and this lovely youung woman is ripe for the pursuit. Looking her over quickly, he decided to get int he first attack.  
  
"Nidoking, use your Horn Attack." he told him.  
  
Raissa smiled. "Hitmonchan, use your Agility!" she shouts.  
  
Determained not to get distracted by her Pokemon coming full blast at his Pokemon, Giovanni lunged at Raissa, knocking her to the floor. Smiling as she struggled beneath him, he pinned her hands over her head.  
  
'Why don't you just give me the badge and we can go somewhere more comfortable together? Not that I'm not enjoying being with you here." he laughs.  
  
"Not worried about your poor Nidoking? You should be. Hitmonchan, use your Fire Punch." she says.  
  
"Nidoking, use your Double Kick." he says.  
  
Nidoking roared as he saw his enemy's firey punch come towards him, kicking him away with his fighting attack. Realizing that the punchy Pokemon wanted to get into a boxing match, Giovanni's Nidoking was more than happy to oblige. Raissa continued to struggle against Giovanni as he held her down, him being slightly stronger than she.  
  
"Seems as though I have the upper hand." Giovanni told her, grabbing her heaving chest.  
  
Raissa frowned. "Not for long." she says. Angry at him for grabbing her, she forcefully raised to her knees, punching him in the face. Reeling from her attack, Giovanni called out another attack to his Pokemon.  
  
"Nidoking, use Thrash." he told him.  
  
He did as he was instructed, losing himself in a fury that even Hitmonchan backed away from. He attempted to use his Comet Punch to defend himself, but was overwhelmed by his enemy's attack. Raissa saw Nidoking begin to stubble a little, confused from the intensity of his attack, and saw that it's owner was confused as well.  
  
"Why did you hit me like that?!" Giovanni asks, still smarting from her blow.  
  
"I am not an object, trainer, and I will not be objectified by the likes of someone like you." she told him.  
  
Giovanni smirked. 'I think you did it because you liked it too much. I saw the way you respomded to me." he says.  
  
"Idiot!" she shouts.  
  
She grabbed him bodily, throwing him over her shoulder to land heavily onto the gym floor. He smiled up at her, watching her chest heave from trying to catch her breath.  
  
"Nidoking, show that wimpy fighting type what you're made of. Thunderbolt attack!" he shouts.  
  
Hitmonchan shrieked as he was hit full blast by Nidoking's electic attack, making him faint instantly.  
  
"Come on baby, give me the badge. I've had enough foreplay already." he laughs.  
  
Raissa smirked; maybe if I play along, I might just throw him off guard...  
  
"Not just yet. I've only started playing with you." she told him.  
  
She smiled and unzipped her tight excercise top a little, exposing her cleavage to him.  
  
"You like what you see? Prove it by sending out your next Pokemon." she says.  
  
Smiling in anticapation, he sent out his Nidoqueen, her her Hitmonlee.  
  
"Show them how it's done, Hitmonleee." she says.  
  
All four opponents lunged at each other at one time, all four trading vicious body slams to one another. As tired as he was, Giovanni felt incredibly turned on by this feminine powerhouse. It was obvious that she felt the same way too, from the way she was wrestling him, being gentle yet not too yielding. He could see the sweat pouring down her neckiline and it made him desire her even more. He looked over at his Nidoqueen, who was crying out from how tired it was. I don't care so much about it getting worn out, but I can't lose this match because of it, Giovanni thought. He smiled as a stragedy quickly came to his mind. He called out to his Nidoqueen to use her Poison Sting, as he grabbed Raissa and unzippe dher top even furthur, almost exposing her to him.  
  
"That's it! I've had enough!" she shouts.  
  
Giovanni shouted out in pain as she punched him even harder than before, making him fall to the floor. Giovanni smiled, watching his Nidoqueen's poison work it's magic.  
  
"Nidoqueen, Body Slam!" he shouts.  
  
The exhausted Hitmonlee tried to use it's Counter attack, but it was too late. Both he and Raissa fell at the same time. Giovanni crawled over to her and sat down roughly on her waist.  
  
"I think you have something that belongs to me." he tells her.  
  
Panting , she handed him his badge. "Here, take it, you pervert. I hope it was worth it." she says.  
  
He smiled. "To see you as helpless like this, it most certainly was." he says.  
  
He recalled his two ground types, laughing to himself as he left the gym.  
  
  
  
Dear Agatha,  
  
I am writing this to you to tell you that I miss you. I enjoyed spending the night with you on the beach very much. I wish we could have many more nights in each other's arms. I am missing you terribly on my journey.  
  
I have caught another Pokemon, a pyschic type. He was a Drowzee when I caught him, but quickly evolved to a Hypno. My Polywag, Ekans and Pidgotto evolved as well. We battled a mighty Snorlax who gave us quite a rollercoaster ride.  
  
I also won another badge today, the Marshbadge at Saffron Gym. I was unsure of the physical challenge I was up against with Raissa, but it was worth it battling her to win. I have to admit it was not my intention to train Pokemon for gym battles, but it is so exhilarating when we win. Perhaps when you are a member of the Elite 4 someday, you'll get even more enjoyment out of battles than you already do.  
  
Every night when I go to sleep, I always release my Pokemon to their own devices. Pidgeot and Hypno are very fond of each other, she likes to nip at the fur around his neck. I shared the trail mix we made together with all of them tonight, and it was like you were here with us.  
  
I am unsure of what I am going to do once I complete my journey. I know my goal should be to become a Pokemon master by challenging the elite 4, but for now, I just want to concentrate onthe happiness of my Pokemon.  
  
If I had one wish, it would be to have some some way of keeping track of the Pokemon you've seen or caught, soething that told you the status of your Pokemon, their levels and what attacks they know and could learn. I know it sounds pretty Farfetch'd, get it? But, perhaps, maybe someday, someone may create such a thing...it certainly would make things easier! I'm glad I have you to listen to al my insane theories. I know I must drive you nuts sometimes with my wild ideas. I just hope when I become a famous Pokemon professor someday, you'll remember me.  
  
Always thinking loving thoughts of you , my ever patient love.  
  
Love, Samuel  
  
  
  
Giovanni sure has been acting strangely since he returned from his gym battle, Deliah thought. We had arranged to meet on the balcony of Saffron's nicest resturant to have a nice celebratory dinner. When he saw me, he embraced me with more euthasium than he usually shows me, and hsowed me his newly won badge. He rushed through his meal, which is also not like him, considering his voracious appetite. It seemed like only minutes as he rushed us back to our private room we had gotten to be alone for the night. I asked him to pardon me for a second while I changed, and he seemed reluctant to part from me. Giovanni have always been close, never more itimate than petting, but lately it seemed that he wanted something more. I had to admit, that a part of me desired that too, considering my feelings for him, but I always let my head control my heart. I fiqured when the time was right, I would know. Shrugging, I changed into a short flannel gown and brushed out my short light brown hair. Walking out of the bathroom, I saw that he had been waiting for me, dressed only in a pair of loose denim shorts.  
  
"You look very pretty, Deliah." he says.  
  
I blushed. "Thank you, Giovanni." I told him.  
  
Walking over to turn off the light, I jumped as I felt him walk over to me and pin me to the room wall.  
  
"Giovanni, what's going into..." I began.  
  
He silenced me with a hard, searing kiss unlike any we'd ever shared. Melting into the feeling of the kiss, it felt like all the walls between us suddenly came down, as he moaned loudly in my ear and kissed me again, leaving me breathless. Our hands began to explore each other, finding places on each other we'd never dared to explore before. I didn't put up a fight as I felt his hands relieve me of my short dress, picking me up in his arms to lay me down on the bed. Feeling his trembling body against mine, it didn't feel awkward at all as we began to kiss, him allowing me to undress him as well. I smiled as I saw the moonlight fall onto his back as we made love that night, sharing our need for each other slowly and without hesitation... 


	13. Surprises

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me. Author's note-I am very proud of what I've done with Giovanni in this fic. My intention was never to really make him a villian, but to show that he is human even though he does decide to take the wrong way about things. My biggest influence for him is my association with a rather ill tempered young man who resembles Giovanni's negative attitude in a lot of respects. And as for the love scene, I thought it was very good, and it took me a long time to fiqure out exactly how I wanted to write it. Here comes the newest part!  
  
  
  
June 7 I awoke the next morning to the sound of trainers loudly discussing the Poke Cup and the next city that I was destined to enter today. "Yeah. It's too bad they won't let kids enter Game Corner. That makes me even more curious about the place." one kid says. I noticed the two of them had befriended my Pokemon and smiled, happy that they had done so. "Good morning, Kangashkan, Pidgeot, Pinsir, Hypno, Polywhirl, Arbok." I told them. The boys laughed nervously. "I'm sorry, are these your Pokemon? I didn't mean to bother them. They're very friendly." he says. "No, it's alright. I like to observe the way humans relate to their animal counterparts. My name is Samuel Oak." I say. He shook my hand. "My name is Pryce. I train ice types. Your Polywhirl's physique is impressive. Are you going to evolve it to Polywrath?" he asks. "I'm not in a hurry; I kinda like him just the way he is. What was this I hear about the next town?" I ask. "It's called Celadon City, the Pokemon Las Vegas. The whole town is fueled by the Game Corner, a huge casino and by the towering Pokemon Shopping Center in the middle of town." he says. 'Is there a gym there?" I ask. "Definitely. It's ran by a young woman named Celesta. She trains grass and poison type Pokemon. You should probably try to catch a fire type Pokemon. I've heard the Safari Zone in Fushcia City is good for that. You are so lucky. You have a Pidgeot to fly you around. Does she know Fly yet?" Pryce asks. I sighed. "She does know how to fly, but not as an attack, no." I told him.  
  
He held out a small pokeball to me. "I was given this Hidden Machine by a gym leader in the Johto region. You can have it if you want. It'll make it so you can teach Pidgeot Fly." he says. I smiled. "Thank you." I say. Waving goodbye to my new friends, I recalled all my Pokemon except for my Pidgeot and petted her. "What do you think, Pidgeot? Are you ready to go to Fushcia City?" I ask. "Pidgeot!!" it shouted happily. I climbed up onto her back shakily, not sure of what was to happen next. I cried out a little in my nervousness as I felt her body begin to leave the ground and clutched onto her feathered body for dear life. Looking back at me to make sure I was okay, Pidgeot made her way to the next town. I smiled and tried to relax, cheering to myself as I looked out at the glorious sight of nature all around me...  
  
  
  
  
  
As Deliah and I rode off on my moped towards Celadon, as I felt her arms tighten around my waist, I knew that after last night together, everything was going to be different between us. I was grateful that neither of us had regrets, as we woke up in the same bed together. I had been afraid that she would be angry at me for what had happened between us, but she proved she wasn't by she and I sharing yet another passionate interlude this morning. Despite the fact that she was the second woman I had been with, Patience had been nothing compared to my Deliah. Deliah had been everything I had hoped for and more, and I know now that I truly loved her. Sighing happily, i parked outside the Pokemon Center as Deliah went in to heal our Pokemon. "I'll meet you at Celadon Gym, okay?" I ask. She turned and looked at me, the love for me shining in her eyes. "Okay." she says. I couldn't remember the last time I'd been so happy, it was like I was on cloud nine. I was so lost in my thoughts as a matter of fact, that I didn't see that I was about to run into someone. "Hey stupid, watch where you're going!" the man says, shoving me. "If you're messing with me, I think you'd better prepare for trouble!!" I shout. The man laughed. "What, or you'll make it double?? You're talking to a member of Team Rocket here; a little punk like you is barely worth bothering with!" he says. "Team Rocket? I've heard of you." I tell him. "Good thing, then perhaps you'll know to stay the hell of our way..." he says. I frowned. "Maybe you'd like to settle this with a Pokemon battle." I say. The man smirked. "As much as I would enjoy moping the floor with you, I have more important things to do." he says, walking away. "Who was that, Giovanni?" Deliah asks, walking up to me. "One of the Team Rocket grunts, that group that asked me to join them before. I'd forgotten that they run the casino here. Come on, let's go to the gym." Giovanni says. Watching them leave, the Team Rocket grunt Giovanni had challenged had made a call to the leader of the organization. The young woman who answered gave her faithful Meowth a quick pat on the back before picking up the phone. "Mai here." she says. "Madame Boss, it seems I found that young trainer you are so eagerly seeking to join our company. He and his lady friend are making their way to Celadon Gym as I speak." he says. Mai smiled. "Good work. Keep your eye on him and the other young trainer that beat him before in their match. I am very eagerly waiting to see which of them will reach my gym first. Goodbye." she says. Mai looked down at the pampered Pokemon in her lap. "If the three of you only knew what plans I had for you..." she laughs.  
  
  
  
My dearest Agatha, for once int he last week, I am actually glad that you are not here with me for the harrowing experience I have had today! It all started when I arrived in Fushcia City this morning. This city, it seemed, was not quite like the others. There was a sense of excitement in the air, unlike the commotion over the Poke Cup in Vermillion. There were many trainers around, along with lots of families and couples. A little girl ran up to Pidgeot and I, curious about my Pokemon. "Mommy, mommy, look, a Pidgeot! Can I pet it?" she squeals. "You're going to have to ask the Pokemon's trainer first. I'm sorry for my daughter's poor manners." she says. I smiled. "No, it's okay. She can pet her if she likes. Is it usually this crowded here?" I ask. My Pidgeot bowed her head to allow the little girl to pet her as her mother and I talked. "You choose a very good time to come here if this is your first time. The Safari Zone is having a contest. It's rumored that one of the legendary birds were spotted on the highest point of the nature refuge, and the first person who brings back a picture of it will win a special prize." she says.  
  
"Wow!! That sounds great! Where do I sign up? Which one was it supposed to be?" I ask. "They say it was Moltres. Considering how rare it is to see even one of the birds in a lifetime, I personally find it hard to believe." she says. I pulled out one of my pokeballs and commanded my Pidgeot to return. "If that's true, if there truly is a Moltres to be seen, I definitely want to be part of this contest." I say.  
  
  
  
  
  
Giovanni smiled at Deliah as they took in their surroundings inthe gym, walking hand in hand. "Oh Giovanni, it is so romantic and beautiful in here with all these flowers and fountains!" Deliah gasps. "It looks more like a garden than a Pokemon gym." Giovanni comments. The couple jumped back as they were confronted by a young girl with a sword. "State your name and intention before you are allowed to enter the chambers of the lady Celesta!" she shouts. "What kind of welcome is that?! Who are you?" Deliah asks her. She smiled. "I am Erika, the daughter of the gym leader and one of the gym's junior trainers. If you are a trainer and wish to challenge the leader herself, you will have to beat me first." she tells them. "Erika! Don't be so rude to our guests." a voice says. All three turned to face who they assumed to be Celesta, a young woman barely in her twenties wearing a elobrate headdress in her short dark hair and a violet silk kimono. Erika fell to one knee, sword in hand, to bow to her mother. "Forgive me, but I was seeking to keep those that would disturb your rest away." she says. "What you should strive for is to be more ladylike in your actions, but I admire your eagerness to battle. If this is your desire, you may do so." Celesta says. Giovanni smiled, pulling out several of his pokeballs. "Well, I'm no gardener, but I think it's time to cut you down to size!" he told Erika. Erika smiled, accepting his challenge...  
  
  
  
"Taking the Moltres challenge, huh? Well, you're in good company. Good luck on your search. Here are your twenty complimentary Safari Balls and the camera you will need to get the winning picture." the desk clerk told me. "Thank you." I say. Once I left the main building to step into the wilderness, I released all my Pokemon as I always do, and gave them a short pep talk. They seemed very excited to be particapating in such a contest, and my Polywhirl especially was most curious about my small camera. "Perhaps I'll catch another Pokemon friend to hang out with us. The warden said there were lots of really great Pokemon out here. Let's get a move on." I said. My Pokemon cheered, leading the way. As we walked, we befriended many different kinds of Pokemon of almost every type, but was not too terribly successful in capturing them. I noticed two young men standing nearby consulting a map and I walked up to them. They were both about ten years old, one with longish wavy blonde hair and dark glasses, the other with short lime green hair. The blonde one turned to greet me. "What belongs to you, but is used more often by others?" he asks. I was slightly taken aback by this greeting. I was not expecting a riddle, so I had to think about that for a moment. Not waiting for my answer, the blonde smiled and shook my hand. "The answer is your name! My name is Blaine and this is my friend, Girarudan. Are you competing in the contest too?" he asks. I smiled. "My name is Samuel Oak. Yes, I signed up for the contest and also to see if I could capture some more Pokemon." I told them. "I've already caught about twenty Pokemon just in the last couple hours, but I really only collect them, I'm not a trainer really." Girarudan says. "You only collect them? You do care about their welfare, don't you?" I ask.  
  
He smirked. "Only for as long as I need to, until I can drop them off at some breeding center. I didn't just come to see Moltres, I came to capture him. He will make a fine addition to my collection." he says. "What nut is like a sneeze?" Blaine asks. His friend smiled at him; he had obviously heard this joke before. "Give up? It's a cashew! I thought my friend here was a little nuts when he told me of his plans, but we'll never see Moltres anyway, so I'm not worried." Blaine says.  
  
"I've been friends with my Pokemon for almost a week now. I got a little bit of a late start being a trainer, but it was worth it. How did the two of you get started?" I ask. "What goes up and down, but stays in one place?" Blaine asks. Girurudan smiled. "I know this one; it's a road." he says. "That's correct, yes. I took the road that my family laid before me as the former gym leaders of the Cinnabar Island gym just a few months ago. I mostly train fire types. That's why I'm here." Blaine says. "What started me on wanting to collect Pokemon was this." Girurudan says, handing me a card. On the card was a picture of an ancient carving of a Pokemon in a holographic image, surrounded by ancient symbols. "What is this?" I ask. "It's the Ancient Mew card, the first Pokemon card I ever bought. It was this card that made me want to be a collector. I know that I'll never be able to capture Mew, but maybe I can capture some other rare Pokemon." Girurudan says. "So, you're the Cinnabar Island gym leader?" I ask Blaine. "Yes, but I don't spend that much time there. I usually only battle trainers that manage to find the key to my gym in the volcano nearby. I recently hatched a Pokemon egg and have been training my new Pokemon there." he says. "What kind of Pokemon is it?" I ask. "It's a Magby, a pre-evolution of Magmar. I found the egg in the volcano. It's already to level twenty-nine but it hasn't evolved yet. I usually only battle with my Magby, Ninetales, Rhyhorn or Flareon." Blaine says. "Those must be some hot matches." I laugh. Blaine smiled. "Yes. You are a man after my own heart, Samuel Oak! I think you and I shall become good friends." he says. "Jokes aside, I think it's starting to get late. Why don't we set up camp for the night?" Girurudan says. 


	14. The great Moltres

Disclaimer-Pokemon is not mine. The characters do not belong to me.  
  
"I can't believe that little pipsqeak beat me, putting all of my Pokemon to sleep indeed." Giovanni complains.  
  
"I'm sure once you capture a fire type here, you should be able to try again. The lady Celesta seemed very gracious despite how rude you were to her daughter." Deliah says.  
  
"It's a good thing that you're my girlfriend, otherwise you'd have to be punished for having such a smart mouth." he told her.  
  
"You're the lucky one, that I put up with you." Deliah jokes.  
  
Giovanni smiled. "Nice. Now you're getting the hang of things. Come on, let's head towards the mountain." he says.  
  
"Madame Boss, we have followed the young man and his girlfriend into the Safari Zone. He failed to acquire the Rainbowbadge and is here to capture a Pokemon strong enough to beat her." the young worker whispered into a nearby telephone.  
  
"Good work. I was told his adversary was there as well. Make sure the two of them meet again; I am anticapating another battle between them." Mai says.  
  
"What about our men on the mountain? They say they think they are close to capturing the mysterious Moltres. We have already found it's nest; it must be close by." he told her.  
  
"Excellent. You never fail to impress me with your good work. Yes, by all means, continue on with the Moltres project and tell the group that they are not allowed to return until Moltres is captured unless they wish to incur my wrath." Mai says.  
  
"Yes, madame boss!!" he exclaims.  
  
"Nine, nine!" Blaine's Ninetales cried, as it helped him start a fire in the middle of a rock pile he had made.  
  
"Good job there, Ninetales. You are quite the torchbearer." Blaine says, petting him.  
  
I pulled out a small package of marshmellows for the three of us to toast and looked over at Girarudan, who was studying his various Pokemon cards intently. I wasn't sure what to think of him.Even though it was unlikely we would even see Moltres, I didn't think his plan to capture him was such a good one. From what I knew of the legendary birds, there were very few of them in the world and some were extinct from what I've heard. I've only heard of a few sightings in my lifetime, and even those were skeptical. I admit I came to see Moltres too, but I would never dream of capturing him.  
  
The three of us turned as we hears a muffled cry in the distance.  
  
"What was that?" I ask.  
  
"It sounds like an injuried Pokemon." Blaine says.  
  
Girarudan stayed behind to watch the campsite as Blaine and I went to check out what the noise was. What we found was a larger than average Kingler looming over a Pokemon a quarter of it's size, that was roaring loudly at him.  
  
"Samuel, I think that's a Charmeleon and I think it's injuried." Blaine says.  
  
I stared at the large crab Pokemon that was attacking him, unaware that water types normally attacked land creatures unprovoked. There wasn't any water close by, so I couldn't imagine where it had come from. I soon had my answer as I heard a couple nearby bickering, obviously the owners of the Kingler.  
  
"Leave him alone, Giovanni! It's not right for you to unleash Kingler on him." Delaih shouts.  
  
Giovanni lashed out the arm Deliah has latched herself to, causing her to fall roughly to the ground.  
  
"Don't interfere in my plans, Deliah. I grow weary of your interruptions!" he shouts at her.  
  
"Giovanni, you leave that Charmeleon alone!" I shout.  
  
Giovanni smirked. "Well, well, if it isn't my rival, Samuel Oak. Surely you don't believe that if you follow me around, that you'll get to share in my glory once I become a Pokemon master?" Giovanni laughs.  
  
"The only thing that you'll ever achieve is being a failure as a human being." I tell him.  
  
"You have a lot of nerve talking to me that way. Why don't we settle this with a Pokemon battle?" Giovanni says.  
  
"That's fine with me." I say.  
  
Before either of us could pull out our pokeballs, I looked over at Deliah, who was being approached by the injuried Charmeleon. She didn't seem frightened by it, but I wasn't about to take any chances. I pulled out one of the Ultra Balls I had recently bought and threw it at the creature. The Charmeleon looked at the ball and grunted as I made the capture. Returning to my hand, the ball shook violently before finally coming to rest.  
  
"What a coward's way to get out of a battle!" Giovanni says.  
  
"I never said I was backing out. I'm ready." I told him.  
  
"What do we see made, but never see after it's made?" Blaine asks.  
  
Deliah stood and walked over to Giovanni.  
  
"A riddle?? Hmm, that's a good one...I have no idea." Deliah says.  
  
"The answer is a noise. I heard another one. We need to hide." Blaine says.  
  
Giovanni frowned, but recalled his Kingler as the four of us hid in some nearby bushes. Giovanni pulled out a pair of binoculars.  
  
"It looks like that guy I bumped into in Celadon City. It seems there's quite a few of his friends here too." he says.  
  
"You bumped into someone?" Delaih asks, not quite remembering.  
  
"Yes. He said he was from Team Rocket. I was going to battle him, but he refused. I wonder what they're here for?" he asks.  
  
"They're probably here to capture Moltres just as I am." Girarudan says, walking up to them.  
  
"Moltres?! There's a legendary bird up here in the mountains?!" Giovanni shouts.  
  
"I realize that we haven't been properly introduced, but you need to keep your voice down." Blaine told Giovanni.  
  
"And who are you to order me around anyway?" Giovanni asks.  
  
"What is the largest room in the world?" Blaine asks.  
  
"Another riddle?!" Giovanni groans.  
  
"The answer is room for improvement, and you, my friend, are surely in need of it." Blaine told him.  
  
We all fell silent as we sensed the Rockets looming closer, armed with flashlights.  
  
"I can't believe the boss won't let us come back until we capture that bird. There's no way we'll ever succeed." one guy says.  
  
He was promptly and brutally slapped for this comment, reeling from the impact.  
  
"You are not worthy of being a member of Team Rocket. It's no wonder the boss is looking to replace you. Now get moving." another says.  
  
"Wow. They don't screw around." I whisper.  
  
We all looked up as the sky grew even darker than it was already, the echo of some immense creature's cry piercing the landscape. I covered my ears and tried to shout out to whomever could hear me, the five of us trying desperately to stay put under the sudden wind that threatened to expose us to our enemy. Looking up, I realized what had caused it to get so dark.  
  
"Moltres..." I whisper.  
  
My mouth fell open as the great bird made it's appearance over all of us, making even the Rockets gasp in surprise at it's appearance. Overwhelmed by the sight of Moltres, the Rockets fumbled with their plans of capturing it for a second, before several of them knelt down with large cannons strapped to their backs.  
  
"Fire!!" their leader shouted.  
  
All of the sudden, the sky was filled with large nets aimed at capturing Moltres, which it prompted torched with it's fire attacks. Undaunted, another team of Rockets began to fire poison barbs at the fire type, hoping to weaken it. This plan was slightly more successful, as Moltres cried out from the pain they inflicted. Looking back at Girarudan, it looked as though he wanted to help the Rockets, but knew we were against him particapating. Deliah and Giovanni were only watching, afraid to do anything, but Blaine and I were too angry not to do something.  
  
"Blaine, we need to help." I told him.  
  
"Yes, but I think we're outnumbered." he told me.  
  
"Not if Giovanni and Girarudan help too...I know you want to catch it too, but this...this is just wrong. Please help us." I ask them.  
  
Deliah looked back and forth between her boyfriend and the collector, who reluctantly nodded. Giovanni, however, would not respond, so she decided to take matters into her own hands. She reached into Giovanni's pockets and pulled out his pokeballs.  
  
"I'll help too." Deliah says.  
  
Giovanni snorted. "You people are a lost cause." he says.  
  
Ignoring him, we released all of our Pokemon into battle. We had many. I had Pidgeot, Arbok, Hypno, Polywhirl, Pinsir, Kangashkan and my new Charmeleon, who refused to return when I had released it by mistake. Deliah had Nidoking, Nidoqueen, Kingler, Graveler, and Machoke, Blaine had Ninetales and Girarudan had Sandslash, Electrode and Rhyhorn, sixteen in all.  
  
It was at this time that the Rockets finally noticed us and released their Pokemon to battle us. They had an assortment of poison types, mostly Vileplumes, Weezings and evolved Nidorans. Our team of Pokemon were more than happy to battle theirs without us having to issue commands.  
  
Girarudan, seeing how distracted Team Rocket was, decided he was going to capture Moltres himself. He and Giovanni had made their way to the highest point of the mountain and Girarudan was holding a electronic device in his hands that he said would allow him to catch Moltres.  
  
What they hadn't expected to find as Girarudan began to fire up his device was my Charmeleon.  
  
"Protecting Moltres, are you? I guess I'll have to try this out on you first." Girarudan says.  
  
Girarudan didn't have a chance as Charmeleon grabbed the device and crushed in hi shands. Roaring in anger, they both gasped as Charmeleon was consumed by a bright white light, evolving into the much larger form of Charizard. She engulfed them both with her Ember attack, causing Girarudan to run away in fright and then she noticed Giovanni had fallen over the side of the cliff.  
  
Having won our battle against the Rockets, who had retreated after much resistance, we ran over to the cliff where Giovanni was hanging on for dear life. He was silently groaning in his fear of falling, but was too proud to ask for help. My newly evolved Charizard wanted to help, but it was her wings that were injuried.  
  
"Deliah, grab Girarudan's pokeballs, he's abandoned his Pokemon." he shouts to her.  
  
"Why don't you ask for help?" I ask him, offering it anyway.  
  
He slapped my hands away. "I'd rather die first!" he told me.  
  
Deliah was crying now, and I felt sorry for her. He was such an insensitive bastard for not caring about her feelings. We all gasped as we saw his grip slipping.  
  
"Giovanni, no!" Deliah shouts.  
  
That was the last sound that all of us heard just before the sky darkened again with Moltres' presense, some kind of brillant light blinding us all and causing us to all lose consciousness... 


	15. final badges

I'm alive, Giovanni grumbled, I can't believe I'm alive! Opening my eyes slowly, I realized it was morning and Deliah was lying asleep on the ground next to me. I barely remembered what had happened last night. I did remember adding Girurudan's Pokemon to my own, thanks to Deliah, and hanging on for dear life at the end of that cliff. I also remember feeling the heat from Moltres flaming body behind me, it calling out loudly before it overwhelmed me with some kind of attack.  
  
Moltres saved me. It saved me somehow from falling,because I have scorch marks on my clothes from where I must have fallen on it's back when I fell. Knowing this now, I wish I had captured it so I could keep the rare treasure to myself. I sighed as I realized I had lost my chance, but had gained three new Pokemon in the process.  
  
I moved close to Deliah and nudged her awake. Seeing me, she shrieked with happiness and embraced me.  
  
"Giovanni, you're alive! Oh, I'm so happy! I was so worried, are you okay?" she asked him.  
  
He smiled. "I am now, now that you're with me." he told her.  
  
They began to share their affection, oblivious to their company nearby. Samuel and Blaine had woken up as well, and were trying not to pay attention to the couple. Blaine was eating breakfast, and Samuel was writing in a purple journal.  
  
"I'm surprised my Charmeleon evolved so quickly, being injured and all." Samuel said.  
  
That snapped Giovanni back to reality. "Your stupid Charizard nearly killed me." he shouted.  
  
"He was defending Moltres, who saved all of us despite your cowardice. Your Pokemon are very strong despite having you as their trainer. I feel sorry for them." Samuel said.  
  
"It's you who's going to be the sorry one when I show you what they can really do in a Pokemon battle. You're lucky Moltres and Team Rocket interrupted our battle." Giovanni said.  
  
"I'm ready to battle when you are." Samuel said.  
  
Deliah jumped up between them. "Please, not this morning. Haven't we been through enough? Why don't we go back to Celadon, Giovanni, and finish what you started?" she offered.  
  
Giovanni snorted but agreed. "you're just lucky i'm in a good mood." he said.  
  
The pair left, leaving Samuel and Blaine to say their goodbyes.  
  
"Here. This is for you." Blaine told him.  
  
"What is it?" Samuel asked.  
  
"It's the key to entering my gym, you've earned it. I have met few trainers with your honor, Samuel Oak, and I can appreciate that. I look forward to battling you soon." Blaine said.  
  
There were no riddles this time, Blaine was serious in extending his hand in friendship. He and Samuel shook hands as they parted ways.  
  
  
  
June 14 It has been almost a week now since I have been able to record in my journal, and oddly enough, this will be the last time I do so, as I am on my way back to Viridian City. I have had a very exciting week in the time that I haven't been writing.  
  
The first stop after capturing Charizard in the Safari Zone was to go back to Celadon. I decided to make a pit stop at the Pokemon Shopping Center after I registered to battle Celesta, anxious to see what all the fuss was about.  
  
It seemed like every floor sold different items for you or your Pokemon, including status enhancers, technical machines evolution stones, you name it. I also met a breeder on the top floor who gave me a few technical machines in trade for the trainer's manuel I had gotten from the folks at the daycare center. It included TM10, Double Edge and TM13, Ice Beam. I taught Double Edge to my Pidgeot, and Ice Beam to my Kangashkan.  
  
Our next stop was Celadon Gym, where we were stopped at the door by a young girl with a sword. She explained that she was a junior trainer named Erika, and I had to beat her to get to Celesta.  
  
She called for one Pokemon each, her using Parasect, me using Arbok. She started the battle by calling on a spore attack, which left my Arbok struggling to stay awake. It used it's Acid attack in an effort to inflict damage, but got hammered by Parasect's Slash attack.  
  
I had to admire my Arbok's courage as he wouldn't allow himself to fall asleep and he won the battle with a swiftly aimed and executed Skull Bash. Celesta herself came out to greet me and bowed as she too initiated a battle between us for the Rainbowbadge.  
  
She called upon a doubles match, where we would send out two Pokemon at a time to battle. I sent out Pidgeot and Charizard to battle against her Gloom and Victreebell.  
  
Complimenting me on capturing such a magnificent fire Pokemon, she called upon both of her grass types to use Sleep Powder. I knew this attack was less powerful than Spore, but more accurate, so I commanded my Pidgeot to use it's Gust attack to sweep the powder out of harm's way.  
  
I was having a hard time commanding my Charizard due to not knowing all it's attacks. She was no longer injured and seemed like a very feisty Pokemon, so I took a chance and taught it Fly very quickly. I commanded both of them into the air to avoid Celesta's attacks as I took a moment to think. Surely my Charizard had to have at least one or more fire attacks, so I commanded her to use Flamethrower. She roared, shaking her head at me.  
  
"You must not have had her very long if you don't even know her attacks." Celesta said.  
  
"I just caught her yesterday. Don't worry about me." I told her.  
  
She smiled. "I'm not. Even with such high level Pokemon, it doesn't look like you're going to win." she said.  
  
I had to agree with her; I needed to figure out what to do if I wanted to win. I told Charizard to use it's Ember attack, and both Gloom and Victreebell shrieked as they were set ablaze. Now it was my chance, as it finally came to me.  
  
"Pidgeot, use Double Edge!" I told her.  
  
I knew Ember was a weak fire attack, but if I spread the fire with my fire- type's attack, I knew Ember would consume them and win me the match. Both of her Pokemon tried to use Solarbeam in order to stop Pidgeot, but it was too late. Celesta recalled them both before they could be burnt to a crisp.  
  
"I surrender, the badge is yours." she said.  
  
We bowed to each other respectfully as I showed my badge to the ones who had really earned it.  
  
"You did a great job, Pidgeot, Charizard. Congratulations on winning your first battle, Charizard." I told her.  
  
She roared happily, as Celesta laughed from me having to recall my Charizard mid-celebration in the fear that it would burn down the gym.  
  
I decided to spend the next couple days training my Pokemon in this huge open field right outside Fuchsia City. It was kinda nice to stay in one place for a couple days and I got all my Pokemon up to level forty.  
  
I considered myself lucky for beating all the gym leaders I had already, but I knew that if I didn't get them up in level, I would never beat the next three gym leaders. I had gone to Fuchsia City gym so I could watch their battles with other trainers, but whoever they were, they had left a note on the door saying that they would not be there for several days.  
  
This was a minor setback, but a setback nonetheless. I can recall on about the third day of training, my Pokemon and I were drawn by the most wonderful smell coming from Fuchsia City beach.  
  
What we found was a young man on the shoreline grilling up some soyburgers and vegetables for all to smell. He looked about the same age as me, maybe older, with long blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail behind his back. He wore a wide brimmed straw hat to keep the sun out of his eyes, a Hawaiian shirt open to the waist, khaki shorts and sandals.  
  
"Good afternoon." he greeted me.  
  
"Good afternoon. My Pokemon and I couldn't help but smell the wonderful food you were cooking." I told him.  
  
"Oh this? I was just making lunch; you can join me if you like." he said.  
  
"I wouldn't want to interfere." I said.  
  
"No problem, I made plenty. I came down to feed my Pokemon and decided to make some food for myself too." he said.  
  
My Pokemon cheered happily as I prepared plates for them and offered to let him use my Charizard to keep the grill going. I looked over at my seven Pokemon as they ate, enjoying their meal immensely. I made myself a soyburger with grilled green pepper and cold cucumber.  
  
"Hey, you eat your sandwiches the same way I do. My name's Reyn. What's yours?" he asked.  
  
"Samuel Oak. Thank you so much for the food. My Pokemon and I are very grateful." I said.  
  
He smiled. "I can see that. I try to specially formulate my food so it can be enjoyed by trainer and Pokemon alike. I plan to own a restaurant someday, so this is one way for me to see if I have the right idea." he said.  
  
"Well, if these sandwiches are any indication of how well you cook, I'll probably be one of your first customers." I said.  
  
He smiled as my pokemon did too. He began to prepare a small bowl of vegetables for his Pokemon.  
  
"Food's ready, come and get it." Reyn called to his Pokemon in the water.  
  
I smiled as i saw a Seaking surface and then a big splash as his Cloyster jumped out of the water, impressing us with a colorful ice display.  
  
"Seaking, Cloyster, this is my friend Samuel and his Pokemon. Samuel, these are my Pokemon." he said.  
  
I watched him feed them as I noticed my Kangashkan eying the Cloyster in a strange way.  
  
"Kangashkan, what is it, girl?" I asked.  
  
"Kangash!" she cried to me, motioning to Reyn's Cloyster.  
  
Reyn noticed this and realized that my Pokemon was taunting him.  
  
"I think your Kangashkan wants to battle my Cloyster. Do you want to battle her, Cloyster?" Reyn said.  
  
Cloyster grinned, accepting her challenge.  
  
"We accept too then. Kangashkan, dive into the water." I told her.  
  
"Remarkable! I've seen very few ground types that can stand the water. This should be an engaging battle." Reyn said.  
  
Both Reyn and I started off the battle by commanding our Pokemon to use their Tackle attacks. Considering that Cloyster was much more agile in the water than my Kangashkan, it had a little bit more of an advantage.  
  
"Don't let that Cloyster get the best of you, Kangashkan. Use your Mega Punch." I told her.  
  
"Cloyster, use your Aurora Beam." Reyn shouted.  
  
My Kangashkan roared as she was hit by the ice type's ice attack, causing icicles to form on her face, body and paws. He had not been completely successful in freezing my Pokemon, but it had decreased the impact of her fighting attack. He grinned and launched his Supersonic attack, causing her to hit herself instead of him.  
  
"Kangashkan, submerge yourself underwater." I told her.  
  
Looking back at me, she completely understood my intention. Still confused, she took a nosedive underwater. The Cloyster's eyes widened as he was suddenly swept underneath the water by my Pokemon and then promptly launched her Comet Punch on him, making him land a few feet away against a heavy rock.  
  
"What an enjoyable battle, congratulations on winning and now I have something for you." Reyn said.  
  
"Oh no, you've done so much already..." I began.  
  
Reyn smiled. "Well, I think that you deserve something for beating me, considering that you usually win a badge when you defeat a gym leader." he said.  
  
"You're the...gym leader here?" I asked, shocked.  
  
He smiled. "And you rightfully beaten me, Samuel Oak. This Soulbadge is yours." he said, holding out my prize to me.  
  
I couldn't believe it as I took my badge in hand, as Reyn explained to me that he used his talent for cooking to lure trainers to the beach so that they would be more relaxed in battle. That was a good idea, I thought, because it took a lot of inner strength to battle in the first place. I smiled as I showed the Soulbadge to my Kangashkan to her delight.  
  
"Thank you, Reyn." I said. 


End file.
